The LA Clippers’ careless turnovers force a tough loss to the Mavericks

Despite a motivating win against the Houston Rockets, the LA Clippers could not complete the road trip as they took their seventh loss of the season to the Dallas Mavericks. Outside of turnovers and personal fouls, this game went almost perfectly for head coach Tyronn Lue. In addition, franchise star Paul George struggled entirely through the course of the second half.

Furthermore, George showed many signs of fatigue late in the fourth quarter. This led to his ten turnovers which were just under half of the team’s total. However, George’s poor performance is understandable, considering he played over 40 minutes on the second night of a back-to-back.

Not to mention the LA Clippers lost their sharpshooting guard Luke Kennard early in the first quarter due to a right calf strain. This ultimately held the team back, as Kennard is an essential piece on both ends of the floor. Additionally, Lue was already without his two-way superstar Kawhi Leonard due to his knee recovery.

Usually, when the LA Clippers shoot 53.1% from the field and 42.9% from three, they end the game in the win column. That was not the case against Dallas, as Lue and his squad turned the ball over 21 times and recorded 27 personal fouls. Had the Clippers taken care of the ball, they could have easily won this match-up.

The contributions from Morris, Wall, and Batum weren’t enough as the Clippers fell to Dallas.

While George struggled with turning the ball over, rotational pieces in Nicolas Batum, Marcus Morris, and John Wall kept the LA Clippers in the game from start to finish. After being down by over 20 points, Lue adjusted his game plan to get his role players easy looks around the perimeter.

Moreover, this strategy worked as Batum had a perfect game knocking down seven three-pointers and grabbing five boards. On top of Batum’s elite shooting, Wall entered the second half with a different mindset. This paved the way for his 17 points, six rebounds, and four assists in only 26 minutes of action.

In addition, Morris has been one of the few consistent players all season long. Yet again, he proved how valuable he could be against the Mavericks. He finished the contest with 18 points, four assists, and three rebounds while going 7-11 from the field. Once Leonard returns to total health, the LA Clippers will need Morris’ impact to ease the pressure on the rest of the squad.

That said, the LA Clippers’ next game is at home against the Detroit Pistons. Although they may be 3-12, the LA Clippers must defend to the best of their abilities if they want to win. George, Morris, and the rest of the team will have to step up to improve the team’s record to 9-7.