Game 5 preview: Entertaining series has both sides feeling upbeat

LOS ANGELES – For 10 days now, the Mavericks and Los Angeles Clippers have given us everything they could offer in terms of heart, skill and, most of all, entertainment value.

The first-round series has been nothing if not riveting from start to 2-2.

Neither team has been able to put a death grip on the best-of-seven series as it heads into Wednesday night’s Game 5 at Crypto.com Arena.

The winner will have the upper hand. But anybody who believes that this game will decide the series hasn’t been watching. Both sides have thrown punches when they appeared to be falling into the abyss.

And that leaves both sides feeling like they’ve got reason for optimism.

“The vibe, the energy is good,” Jason Kidd said. “We know what we have to do.”

What the Mavericks must do above all else is win one more game in LA. To move on to the next round, that’s mandatory.

The Clippers have to feel like they are in a good spot with the series reduced to a best-of-three, two of which would be in LA if it goes to a Game 7.

Hold serve, and they are headed to the conference semifinals.

And just as the Clippers have gotten to this point in part by putting the clamps as best they can on Luka Dončić, the Mavericks know they now must get a handle on LA’s lead horse, James Harden.

It was Harden who hit 12-of-17 shots in Game 4. And that included a fourth quarter in which he was 6-of-8, with all but one of the shots coming in or near the paint as he penetrated the Mavericks’ defense.

Earlier, he had hit four of five three-pointers.

So the Mavericks had to pick their poison.

“We’re going to live with that,” Kidd said of Harden’s floaters in the paint. “Threes can beat you. Twos in this league don’t beat you. It gives you an opportunity.

“We just got to make it tougher on him with the twos. We can’t just ‘Ole’ or give him free layups. He’s too good. So we have to do a better job on the ball with him.”

Here’s what else to watch for in the crucial Game 5 in LA:

• The extra day off since Game 4 on Sunday probably helps both teams, but should be especially beneficial for Luka and anybody else who is nursing aches and pains (which is pretty much everybody). “It’s great, more time to prepare and get what you need, get treatment, get film, whatever you need to do to get better and prepare for the next game,” said P.J. Washington on Tuesday.
• With Kawhi Leonard likely to miss the game, the Mavericks know it will mean more of an offensive load for Harden and Paul George. And the Clippers play differently without Leonard. “They play faster,” Kidd said. “And also that gives Paul George and those guys the green light. You give PG those kind of looks early, he’s one of the best in the league.”
• Bench concerns: The Mavericks’ bench has been mostly quiet in this series, with the exception of Maxi Kleber. Dante Exum has not had an impact and with Tim Hardaway still out with a right ankle sprain, the rotation has gotten even shorter. In Game 4, it essentially was Kleber, Dereck Lively and a few minutes of Josh Green. But the Mavericks’ bench was outscored 22-13. “Our bench has to be better,” Kidd said. “Our team has to be better.”
• Kyrie Irving has been sensational in this series, averaging 28.8 points, including his 40-point eruption on Sunday, all accomplished in the final three quarters.
• Ivica Zubac has been largely unstoppable for the Clippers, regardless of whether they win or lose. The 7-foot center has averaged 16.3 points and 9.8 rebounds, but that includes a lackluster 13 points and four rebounds in Game 4 on Sunday, when the Clippers had other players rolling.

MAVERICKS (2-2) at LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS (2-2)

• When/where: 9 p.m. Wednesday, Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles.
• TV: KTXA (Channel 21) and TNT.
• Radio: Lone Star 92.5 FM; 99.1 FM Zona MX (Spanish).

X: @ESefko