The NBA Playoffs finally kick off today and the 2 biggest favorites for the title, the Los Angeles Lakers and the neighboring Clippers, have a tough matchup ahead of them. The Lakers take on Portland, while the Clippers go against the Mavericks. Is an upset possible against the 2 top seeds in the West?
Los Angeles Clippers V. Dallas Mavericks
If you didn’t know it yet, this year’s iteration of the Dallas Mavericks posted the best offensive rating for a season in NBA history. No team has been better offensively in this league. They’re led by probably the most unique tandem in NBA history, Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis.
Luka is a phenom. At the age of 21, he has averaged 29/9/9 on 46% shooting. His 6’7” frame at point guard makes him so awkward to defend. The other guy, Porzingis, might be even more awkward to defend. A 7’3” stretch big with limitless range and tremendous potential. Averages of 20 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocks while coming of a long-term injury, and he has turned it up a notch in the Bubble, averaging 10 more points on increased efficiency.
But their role players also hit big shots, allowing those 2 to prosper in their pick-and-roll or pick-and-pop offense. Their rotation consists of Tim Hardaway Jr., Seth Curry, Jalen Brunson, Dorian Finney-Smith, Maxi Kleber, Delon Wright, Trey Burke and even an increased role for Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who has worked his way into Rick Carlisle’s rotation.
The Clippers’ biggest problem is height, while the Mavericks have some towers. Porzingis is 7’3”, Marjanovic 7’4”, Kleber 6’10”. Ivica Zubac can do a capable job, but will be a weakness when he has to switch on Luka in the pick-and-roll offense. Montrezl Harrell, the center off the bench for the Clippers, measures 8 inches shorter than Porzingis. If the Mavericks manage to abuse their height and use their role player the right way, they can make this series long and tough for the Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers V. Portland Trail Blazers
Remember that all-time great offensive rating from the Mavs we mentioned earlier? In the Bubble, Portland posted an offensive rating of 122.5, while the Mavericks had one of 115.9. Yes, this is a way smaller sample size and we’re not taking anything away from the great offensive system in Dallas, but this shows that Portland has weapons.
The biggest one of those weapons is Bubble MVP Damian Lillard. At this point he’s not a weapon anymore, he’s a nuclear bomb. Dame averaged a league-high 38 points and 10 assists on 50% shooting and 44% shooting from deep. He banged in the most triples, led everyone in 4th quarter scoring and willed his team into the playoffs with a 7-2 record. Scoring outputs of 45, 51, 61 and 42 put the league on notice.
Next to him we have his backcourt partner C.J. McCollum, who has always been a bucket on every level. The dynamic backcourt will have their way against the backcourt of the Lakers, who don’t have any realistic defensive options for those guards.
But that is not it. Nurkic has been averaging 18/10/4/2/1 since his return. Gary Trent Jr. has been shooting the ball with supreme confidence, averaging 17 points on 51% shooting from deep while having made the second most 3’s in the bubble, only behind Dame. Carmelo Anthony is also contributing 17 after being written off by the media. The Blazers have weapons.
It’s the complete opposite on defense, and the Lakers should exploit that in theory. However, the Lakers are a bad 3-point shooting team and that’s where the Blazers are atrocious. If the court shrinks with LeBron driving to the basket with AD and McGee/Howard around, Melo, Whiteside, Nurkic and Collins can swarm the paint, where they have been a good shot-blocking and rebounding unit.
LeBron and company haven’t been able to get a rhythm going in the bubble, while Portland has been playing near life-or-death games ever since their loss against the Clippers. The Blazers should like their matchup against the Lakers, and we’re even going as far as saying the Blazers will beat the Lakers.
Courtside 