Mavericks Vs Clippers Ultimate Preview: Capepper vs. Doncic, Roadblock or Stepping Stone?

Luka played three playoff games in the first five years of his career, two first-round and one Western final.

The two first-round picks were against the Clippers, and the only breakthrough was because the Clippers were difficult to make the play-offs.

If Luka is compared to Jordan and Kobe, then the Clippers are the Pistons, Spurs and Suns to him.

This is the "career opponent" that God has arranged for you, and you are qualified to imagine the championship only if you break through them.

Mavericks Vs Clippers, this is the first and only set of confirmed matchups in the Chaos West this year, the fourth conversation in five years, if you don't talk about fate, you really can't explain it.

In the last two duels, in fact, the core plot is the same:

Luka is in the sky and looks like the best player in the series. But Ka Jiao can always adjust in time, and then Director Lu plays with the "five-foreign lineup". On the Mavericks' side, Porzingis pulled his hip (once injured, once completely targeted by the Clippers), and finally regretted to be out.

But interestingly, the first time it was 2-4, the second time it was 3-4, so what about this year?

This year is likely to be different, as both teams have changed dramatically.

Let's talk about the Clippers first, they brought in Harden this season, but at the cost of sending away the four forwards of Batum, Morris Jr., Covington and Martin Jr.

In particular, the top two are not only the "No. 5 positions" in the Clippers' two generations of five-out lineups, but also play an important role in the playoff matchup with the Mavericks.

In order to get Harden, the Clippers let go of the forward thickness that once topped the league.

But there are losses and gains, and Harden's arrival has made it easier for Pepper this year, with both players playing their highest attendance this year. Leonard's 34.3 minutes per game is a career record.

At the same time, the most important change is Harden's style of play, most of the time with a center on the court as a blocking wall and endpoint, so Zubac, Plumlee and Theis, the Clippers have three in one go, and today they just signed Kai Jones, the "jumping man" who blocked Wembanyama in last summer league but was cut by the Hornets because of drug rambling.

First, it is to improve the basket protection and athleticism of the interior line, and the second is to make Harden and Wei Shao, two ball-handlers who mainly rely on blocking and pick-and-roll to start offense, play more comfortably.

In the playoffs, the Clippers' obsession with the five small is much weaker than the previous two in terms of subjective will (the engine has become more dependent on Harden on the inside) and objective reality (the reduction of forward resources).

Unless, of course, Director Lu is beaten to the edge of the cliff by Luka again.

On the other hand, the Mavericks, compared to the overall change in style after the Clippers introduced Harden, they have taken a big step forward on the road around Doncic.

The first two matchups were a thing of the past, and Hardaway Jr. was also on the bench, and after two seasons of operation, Luka's helpers have now become Irving, P.J. Washington, Lively and Gafford around.

Compared with Porzingis, who was in a slump for two years, and Hardaway and Booker, who once partnered with Dongzi in the backcourt, Irving's addition is undoubtedly a huge improvement, and the addition of Gafford and P.J. Washington in the middle of the season has improved the team's frontcourt hardness, plus this year's Levery (due to knee injury and his mother's death is undecided).

Although it is currently only fifth in the West, this Mavericks lineup may be the strongest Mavericks since Luca landed.

Even with two young, high-quality players (Lively & Gafford in his possession), Kidd was deliberately experimenting with P.J. Washington as the No. 5 in the second half of the season.

Eastern Europe, plus Exum, P.J. Washington, Klaibault, Jones, and three of Hardaway, can form a similar five-foreign lineup.

Because now the firepower of the Eastern European combination is too strong.

This season, Luka averaged 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds and 9.8 assists per game, almost a triple-double in the season, and won the first scoring title of his career.

While averaging 25.6 points per game, Irving is shooting 49.5/41.1/90.5 from three, quasi-"180 Club". The most interesting thing is

He played 2,030 minutes with the Mavericks this year, more than in any other season with the Nets.

It's hard for you to imagine that he is now playing the role of a veteran player at the bottom of the team.

In the last two games of the regular season, the Mavericks chose the main rotation to rest in a large area, aiming at the Clippers to break through the bottleneck and completely break through the roadblock that has blocked them for two years in the healthiest state.

And when it comes to health, this is probably the most important thing on the Clippers today.

Leonard hasn't played since playing the Hornets on April 1. I believe that even the most persistent Clippers supporters admit that with or without this "super robot", the Clippers are completely two teams.

Although the Clippers' 4-3 record in the following games is not bad, George, Harden, and Wei Shao have all had outstanding performances, but the team's real anchor is the 33-year-old super forward who is not smiling.

Even in the 2021 meeting, when Doncic indiscriminately beat Beverley, Reggie, Paul George and Batum, and even used Zubac as a humanoid sight, he finally forced Lue to put Leonard on the opposite in Game 7, although Luka scored 46 points and 14 assists in that game, but used 30 shots.

And in that game, the Mavericks were 5-of-25 from three-point range, and the bench only scored 6 points, and the Clippers' 126-111 win was already a success.

Two years later, Kapepper is two years older, and Batum and Morris Jr., who had made great contributions at the time, have left the team in favor of Harden, who brought his own system to join, and by the way, brought Zubac and Powell alive (both of whom played at the best efficiency of their careers).

But without Leonard, the Clippers don't have any future.

That's why owner Ballmer has so far only signed a contract extension with him.

Specific to this playoffs, both teams are evenly matched, and both teams have stars who can completely dominate a game or even an entire series (Eastern Europe & Kappyan).

There are also backhands when the core is focused on (Irving, Harden and even Westbrook).

Although the Clippers have a home-court advantage, it is negligible, firstly, they are "backwards" in Los Angeles itself, and the home-court atmosphere and hidden advantage throughout the season are almost negligible.

At the same time, the stars of Eastern Europe and the Clippers have the ability to make the arena dead on the road, and in the 2021 playoffs, the two teams won on the road, lost both at home, and finally the Mavericks, who had the home court advantage, lost 3-4 in the tie-break, which can be called an alternative legend in the NBA.

Both teams are three-point teams in the league, with the Mavericks averaging 39.5 shots per game that are second in the league and third in the league on 14.7 shots, and the Clippers who are shooting 38.3% from three-point range and fourth in the league.

They are accustomed to creating the ultimate offensive space and allowing the stars of the team to play the most exaggerated scoring performances.

The match point in this game may lie in who forces the opponent to change the formation first.

In the end, Doncic and Irving once again indiscriminately broke the Clippers' interior line and forced them out of the five-out lineup to "press the box", or the Clippers used the advantage of Kajiaoha's multi-point offense to force the Mavericks to withdraw the center and play against them in a five-game match.

Whoever gets the big man on either side ends up on the pitch for longer may ultimately decide who will have the last laugh, which is actually a reflection of who can better dismantle the opposing defense in Eastern Europe and Kajiaoha.

If you are a fan of the previous generation of stars such as Harden and Ka Pepper, you will be moved by the sacrifice of the veterans who are about to enter the twilight, join forces to fight for another championship, and join forces to suppress one of the best young people in the NBA today, and it is very likely that it will be the face of the future league.

Since he is destined to be Jordan, then he should be back to the Pistons and act as a roadblock for the future legend.

If you are a supporter of Doncic, you should be glad that his championship is destined to be uneven, Leonard and Paul George, the two super forwards with the most balanced offense and defense in the previous decade, are there, and now with the style and the most imagined Harden, they are the best whetstone in Doncic's career, whether he can be stepped on by Luka as a stepping stone, it depends on his ability.

The former princes face off against the future king, and it is destined to be a thrilling and evocative series.

Final prediction: Mavericks 4-3 Clippers.