Mavericks vs. Clippers: 3 Big Things to Watch - ‘Could Be A Lot Worse!’

The Dallas Mavericks kick off their West Coast road trip on Tuesday night against the slumping Los Angeles Clippers.

The Dallas Mavericks (23-18) hit the road to take on the Los Angeles Clippers (21-21) on Tuesday night. 

Dallas is coming off 120-109 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday night as Luka Doncic got the night off to rest his sore ankle. 

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way for OKC with 33 points to run past the shorthanded Mavericks, who were led by Christian Wood's 27 points and 17 rebounds.

“What’s our record, 23-18? It could be a lot worse,” said Mavs veteran Tim Hardaway Jr. “I think a lot of guys aren’t satisfied. We got a lot of bad losses we wish we had back.

“It’s a new team, new season. A lot of guys injured. I think that being said, I feel like we were in this same position last year. We had guys, myself included, out with COVID. And us watching that propelled us to finish strong. So I think we’re [heading] in that direction.”

The Clippers have now lost six-straight games, coming off a 112-108 crunch time loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday night.

Dallas won the first matchup of the season against the Clippers on Nov. 15 in a 103-101 victory at home. 

Here are the 3 big things to watch in tonight's game. 

Who will play and who won’t?

These two teams are very familiar with each other as they've matched up in the postseason in two of the last three seasons. 

But, in tonight's matchup, both teams will be without core members of their roster. 

The Mavericks are still without Dorian Finney-Smith, Josh Green, and Maxi Kleber. Leading into Tuesday, Doncic, who loves playing against the Clippers, was listed as questionable with left ankle soreness, but he has since been upgraded to probable.

The Clippers will be without Paul George, who is out due to right hamstring soreness, and Luke Kennard with right calf soreness. 

With Doncic likely back, the Mavericks should have the upper hand tonight.

Wood's Dominance

Despite Sunday's loss, Wood had a monster game, finishing with 27 points and 17 rebounds on 8-of-13 shooting from the floor. 

In tonight's matchup with the Clippers, it'll be Ivica Zubac who stands in Wood's way in the paint. 

Zubac is a big body who is able to protect the rim and dictate the interior defense for the Clippers, but if Wood stretches out to the 3-point line, that's where he can put Los Angeles' big man on skates. 

Doncic has faired quite well in his switches with Zubac on him, so expect the Mavericks offense to get creative in ways to help Wood exploit his weaknesses as well.

All Eyes on Kawhi

With George out for the Clippers, the focal point for Dallas' defense will be Kawhi Leonard, who has showed flashes of his Finals MVP self as of late, despite the six-game skid. 

In Leonard's last 10 games, he's averaging 21.9 points on 50 percent shooting from the floor, including fresh off a 29-point performance in Sunday's loss to Atlanta.

With Finney-Smith and Kleber still out for the Mavericks, Jason Kidd will likely call upon Reggie Bullock to start on Leonard, but it will need to be a team effort to keep the Clippers' star from getting going.

If Leonard is off tonight, Dallas should keep their hands up on Norman Powell and Marcus Morris, who always seems to shoot well against the Mavericks. The Clippers will be motivated to stop a six-game skid in front of their home crowd.

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