Even though they were shorthanded, the Mavs came close to a comeback victory over the Clippers, trailing by 22 points. However, they were unable to pull it off.

The Dallas Mavericks, who were playing without key players, lost to the Los Angeles Clippers 120-111 at American Airlines Centre on Wednesday, following a crushing away loss to the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets. With the loss, the Mavs fell to 16-11 on the season, while the Clippers improved to 17-10 and won the season series 2-1 to secure the tiebreaker. 

All-Stars Kyrie Irving (right heel contusion) and Paul George (illness) were among the notable players ruled out for both teams. Josh Green (right elbow sprain), Maxi Kleber (right small toe dislocation), and Dereck Lively II (left ankle injury) were all out for the Mavs. 

The Clippers initially reversed their strategy of blitzing ball screens to prevent Doncic from getting the ball early and creating 4-on-3 opportunities. Instead, they filled the gaps and delivered late doubles whenever Doncic attacked downhill. As a whole, the plan included filling the paint and accommodating players with lower shooting abilities. 

The Slovenian superstar finally scored with a spin out of the post against a smaller defender, earning a late double as he finished a floater for a and-one. The base plan had succeeded; he had missed his first six shots from the floor. 

The Mavs began to use Kawhi Leonard more as a ball screener to clear the floor for teammates to drive after the Clippers started using him as a main defender against Doncic to prevent mismatch hunting. But as the game progressed, Dallas attempted to play more via Horns, with the hope of setting up Doncic to attack with clean touches that didn’t need dribbling.

In an effort to preserve the paint, the Mavericks frequently used a 1–5 switch, relying on Markieff Morris and Dwight Powell while punishing Leonard with double teams, especially on post touches. Dallas’ switching strategy failed, as they had trouble stopping dribble penetration. 

The Clippers took an early 35-22 lead after converting at a significantly higher rate than the Mavs. Leonard led the team in scoring with 10 points after the first quarter, marking an unusually sluggish start for Doncic. In spite of his seven points and three assists, Doncic was unable to convert on most of his attempts. 

With Doncic sitting on the bench, the Mavs were clearly at a disadvantage in terms of available firepower. In a normal scenario, Irving would lead the second-quarter bench unit, but with Dante Exum out, they were left to wing the offence. At the same time, the Clippers took an 18-point lead (45-27) at the 8:54 mark, thanks in large part to the offence that Harden and Westbrook organised. While they were having trouble keeping the lead, Doncic came back into the game.

During his possessions in the second quarter, Doncic utilised a mix of aggressive switches and playing Horns out of the elbow. After Doncic had been successful attacking downhill earlier in the game, the Clippers become more aggressive in loading the gaps against him in those Horns setups. 

In the second quarter, the Clippers relied heavily on Harden to carry the offence, using switches to attack mismatches and double-drag screening actions to create scoring opportunities. Even with Doncic in the lineup, the Mavs had trouble keeping up with the Lakers’ persistent shotmaking. They fell behind by 22 points in the first quarter, but eventually found their footing. 

Midway through the second quarter, Doncic settled into a groove by attacking the basket early in the shot clock. When the corners were empty, he would frequently use Derrick Jones Jr. or Tim Hardaway Jr. as a side ball screener to get the ball to the open man. With 4 minutes and fifty-eight seconds remaining in the game, after the Mavs had cut the lead to fifteen points, he made a turnaround jumper in the post and a step-back three, which caused the Clippers to call a timeout. The Slovenian superstar got off to a sluggish start, but he recovered by relentlessly seeking out mismatches.

After falling behind by 15 or more points multiple times in the second quarter, the Mavs ended the first half down 11 points thanks to two 3-pointers shot by Hardaway. Doncic shot 7–17 from the field, 2–7 from outside the arc, and 5–6 from the charity stripe to complete the half with 21 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists. The Clippers’ field goal percentage was 59.0 percent, while the Mavs’ was 41.7%. 

With Ivica Zubac remaining in the game, the Mavs used a small ball lineup consisting of Doncic, Exum, Hardaway, Williams, and Jones to create greater half-court spacing and a quicker, more versatile defensive unit. Getting out in transition was a breeze because of the huge advantage it gave them, which often came from forcing mistakes and missed attempts.

Early in the third quarter, Hardaway drove and finished, and then Grant Williams converted a transition putback, reducing the Mavs’ lead to seven points. Hardaway helped finish off a steal with a breakaway dunk, and Dallas kept fighting back, cutting the lead to 69-64 at the 9:29 mark. Prior to inserting Dwight Powell into the starting lineup, Dallas’s small ball group staged a remarkable comeback, reducing the Clippers’ lead to a mere one point.

Subject: USATSI 22010460

As reported by USA Today’s Kevin Jairaj

The Clippers’ aggressive half-court defensive strategy kept Doncic in the crosshairs during the Mavs’ surge. He scored just one point while playing mostly out of corner pindowns and acting as a decoy to locate weak-side threats for off-the-catch attacks. Forcing mistakes or catching missed shots allowed the offence to accelerate the pace and produce the majority of the goals. 

With Powell on the field, the Clippers were aggressive by doubling down on Doncic, while the Mavs’ defensive execution was hindered by having a slower big man. After this point, Los Angeles reestablished a lead of up to 10 points. Doncic made plays on drives and the defence forced mistakes as Dallas had more opportunity to operate after Powell was substituted out. After a successful deployment of a small ball group to end the third period, Dallas found themselves trailing 85-83 heading into the fourth quarter. 

The Clippers got off to a strong start in the fourth quarter thanks to the Mavericks’ defensive struggles in the paint, which allowed Los Angeles to capitalise on several second-chance points. But Dallas was more disciplined in its execution. 

With the Clippers blitzing Doncic, the team got creative, using Exum as a screener to attack out of the short roll and push the transition pace when possible. The Mavs used a corner 3-pointer from Exum to take the lead, with the Clippers continuing to send late doubles on Doncic to get the ball out of his hands. 

Doncic later served as a decoy screening for Exum, creating a clean drive-and-dish for a go-ahead 3-pointer by Jaden Hardy out of the corner. The Clippers decided to call a timeout with 7 minutes and 24 seconds left in regulation since Dallas had a lead of 98-97. The Mavs dialed up the defensive intensity with full-court pressure, but Harden made numerous step-back 3s, causing teams to exchange leads and tied scores.

 

With the Clippers frequently sending late doubles at Doncic, he found ways to create advantages for timely plays throughout the stretch run of the game. He held the double team at one point long enough to force a recovery, then attacked downhill for a floater. He would frequently go into coverage and use his footwork to open up scoring opportunities. In this situation, Hardaway capitalised by making a 3-pointer, re-establishing Dallas’ lead at 105-104. 

Leonard began to leave his imprint on the game as the Mavs’ offensive execution halted. He drew two on a drive for a dropoff pass, resulting in an and-one for Norman Powell on a cut, then attacked the baseline for a dunk. The Clippers took a 116-110 lead with 1:47 remaining in regulation. Dallas failed to rally back to close the game.  

The Mavs return to action on Friday when they begin a back-to-back, starting with a road matchup against the Houston Rockets, followed by a home game against the San Antonio Spurs.