The Mavericks won Game 2 with their defense, specifically with their stars — Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving — putting effort in on that end of the floor. It was a refreshing sight to see as Dallas held L.A. below 100 points and evened up the series after an embarrassing blowout loss to open the series.
“Obviously, it was a must-win and everybody was locked in,” P.J. Washington said after the win. “They punched us in the mouth in Game 1, and we just wanted to respond.”
Dallas now hosts the next two games and has an opportunity to take control of the series starting with Game 3 Friday night.
Here’s what to know ahead of Game 3:
Mavericks at Clippers — Game 3
- Date: Friday, April 26 | Time: 8 p.m. ET
- Location: American Airlines Center — Dallas
- TV channel: ESPN | Live stream: fubo (try for free)
- Odds: Mavericks -4.5; O/U 212.5
Storylines
Mavericks: Aside from the stingy defense Dallas played, the Mavericks also got far better production from Washington and Derrick Jones Jr. Washington put up 18 points on 5 of 10 from the floor, including 3 of 4 from deep, and Jones tacked on 10 points. That’s huge for Dallas and a big reason why this team was so successful in closing the season. The Mavs will need them to keep that up going forward in this series to have a chance because we saw in Game 1 that it can’t just be Doncic and Irving doing all the heavy lifting.
Clippers: The biggest key to the Clippers success will be Kawhi Leonard, who returned in Game 2. You could tell he wasn’t fully comfortable on the floor, but surely he’ll round into form as the series carries on. L.A. will need Leonard to get comfortable at a quicker pace, though in order to avoid falling behind in this series. Leonard is the game-changer in this series for the Clippers, and they’ll need him performing at a high level on both ends to limit Dallas’ stars from going off.
Prediction
The Mavericks seemed to wake up in Game 2, and with the defense they’re playing it makes things tougher for the Clippers. I think with playing at home the offense will come alive for the first time in this series, and as long as Doncic and Irving stay locked in defensively, the Mavericks have a recipe for success in Game 3. The Pick: Mavericks -4.5
