LA Clippers vs. Dallas Mavericks Game 2 Preview and Prediction

Will the LA Clippers be able to take a 2-0 series lead over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night?

The LA Clippers kicked off their first-round series with the Dallas Mavericks with a win on Monday night, pulling away in the fourth quarter for a 118-110 victory. 

It was a closely-contested battle, and one that likely made Clippers fans uncomfortable at times. After going up 18-2 in the early minutes of the game, the Mavericks stormed back and turned a 16-point deficit into a 14-point lead in the second quarter.

LA's second-half defense is ultimately what won the game, as the Clippers managed to hold Dallas to just 41 points over the final 24 minutes — after allowing 38 in the first quarter alone. 

LA has a 1-0 lead in the series because of it, but it was an ugly and unsatisfying win.

Now, the Clippers have a chance to take a commanding 2-0 series lead, but it's going to take a much more disciplined effort on the defensive end of the floor to get the job done. 

Injury Report

On Tuesday, the Clippers released a clean injury report for the first time in months. Unfortunately, that didn't last long.

Patrick Beverley has since been added to the report due to a calf injury — the same one that kept him out of a handful of the team's seeding games. 

It's not a severe injury, but Doc Rivers has previously said that the team plans to be cautious with him. 

During his pregame media availability, Rivers told reporters that Beverley will not play tonight. Expect to see guys like Reggie Jackson, Landry Shamet and Terance Mann earn minutes in his place. 

For Dallas, Kristaps Porzingis and Trey Burke are both considered "probable" to participate in Game 2. 

Key Storylines

LA: Montrezl Harrell's Progression with the Second Unit

Clippers reserve Montrezl Harrell made his bubble debut on Monday, returning to NBA action for the first time since March 10. He logged six points and two rebounds in just under 15 minutes of action, and looked (expectedly) winded at times.

Harrell's minute cap may not be raised significantly in Game 2, but there's a good chance that he gets five or so minutes more than he did on Monday — big news for LA's bench.

The 26-year-old was recently named a finalist for this year's Sixth Man of the Year award, and deservedly so. On the season, he's averaging 18.6 points per game and leading the NBA's top-scoring second unit, which scored over 51 points per game this year.

LA's bench produced less than half of that average on Monday, as Harrell, Lou Williams and JaMychal Green went for just 25 points on 8-of-18 shooting. Reggie Jackson and Landry Shamet, who also came off the bench in Game 1, were 0-of-6.

If Harrell starts to look even a bit more like himself on Wednesday (and again, it's not his fault that he hasn't yet), the Clippers should feel very confident in the second unit moving forward.

Dallas: Kristaps Porzingis and Technical Fouls

Mavericks phenom Luka Doncic went off for 42 points in Game 1 — the most points scored by a player in their playoff debut in NBA history — a feat that was unfortunately overshadowed by the ejection of Kristaps Porzingis.

The seven-footer was tossed early in the second half of Monday's contest after escalating an incident between Doncic and Marcus Morris, picking up his second technical foul of the day in the process.

Many viewed the ejection as a weak move (including LeBron James and Dirk Nowitzki) and assuming Porzingis plays in Game 2, he'll be as motivated as ever to carry his team to victory.

Prediction

If the Clippers give a more disciplined defensive effort, it'll be hard for the Mavericks to come out on top in Game 2. Otherwise, LA could end up in a shootout with the league's most potent offense, and that's a place no team would want to be in right now.

That said, given LA's dominance in this series throughout the season and when healthy (the Clippers are 11-1 on the year when the full roster is available) it doesn't feel like Kawhi Leonard and co. will slip up.

I've got the Clips taking Game 2 by a final of 119-105.

How to Watch

The LA Clippers and Dallas Mavericks will take the floor at 9:00 p.m. ET. The game will air on TNT and Fox Sports Prime Ticket.