Clippers get embarrassed by Luka Doncic and the Mavs | Dallas Mavericks vs Los Angeles Clippers Game 2 Recap

 Clippers get embarrassed by Luka Doncic and the Mavs

The Clippers were the favourites...Not anymore. They lost BOTH games on their home and now they gotta go to Dalls. There have been 426 playoff series in which one team led another 2-0. The team facing that deficit has won only 27 of those series, or roughly 6.3 percent. But Kawhi is no stranger to 2-0 deficits. He was on the championship Raptors team and was down 2-0 against the Giannis-led Bucks and won the series without losing a another game. But that series was different. The Raptors lost when they were on the road and won 3 of the 4 games at home afterwards. This series, they have to win at least 2 on the road to try to beat Dallas as a 3-0 or 3-1 comeback really is improbable. But it is possible and Kawhi has witnessed the wrong side of it, blowing a 3-1 lead to the Nuggets in the bubble last year. 

Anyway, back to this game, Luka played well again with 39 points. Led by Luka Doncic’s 39 PTS, 7 REB and 7 AST, the No. 5 Dallas Mavericks defeated the No. 4 LA Clippers, 127-121, in Game 2. Additionally for the Mavericks, Tim Hardaway Jr. recorded a Playoff career-high 28 PTS (6 3PM) in the victory, while Kawhi Leonard tallied 41 PTS, 6 REB and 4 AST for the Clippers in the losing effort.

As you can see from the stats, Tim Hardaway Jr. lit it UP from behind the arc, shooting 6-8 and getting a career high 28 points. Kawhi was AWESOME but they couldn't pick up the W at home. Here are some takeaways:

1) The Clippers supporting cast was not good at all besides from Reggie Jackson who score 15PTS. They gotta play better and Playoff Rondo has to come to play.

2) The Clippers, being the best 3-point shooting team in the NBA have to shoot better than a measly 31%. The Clippers are now towards the bottom in postseason 3PT% and the Mavs are at the top shooting 50%. from behind the arc.

I have only got 2 this time around. Let's be real here, Kawhi and PG can't carry the Clips all the way. Even if Kawhi plays really well in the rest of the games, he can't beat a team as good as the Mavs alone. Same was with the 2019 Raptors, Fred Vanvleet shot 82.4% in the last three games of the Bucks series, Kyle Lowry averaged 20 in the same time span and Pascal Siakam and Norman Powell combined for 44 to beat the Bucks in game 3 to avoid a what would be an insurmountable loss.