3 things the LA Clippers need to do to bounce back against the Dallas Mavericks | 2021 NBA Playoffs

Having lost on home court on Saturday, the LA Clippers went down 2-0 in their first-round series with the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday. Mavs star, Luka Doncic, has been electric while Tim Hardaway Jr. is playing some of the best basketball of his career, helping the Slovenian on offense.

For the LA Clippers, meanwhile, the tale is very different. Despite dominating the regular season on offense, they have struggled to handle the pressure of the playoffs and Doncic's brilliance. With the series now shifting back to Dallas, Ty Lue will be looking for a much improved performance from his men. In order to achieve this, there will have to be considerable changes, some of which we will cover in this article.

How can the LA Clippers recover their two-game deficit in the first round of the NBA playoffs?

There is a mini-crisis going on in the Clippers' season, and they only have themselves to blame. A championship favorite heading into the NBA playoffs, Ty Lue's men have looked lackluster on defense and currently have no answer for Doncic. Combined with the LA Clippers' poor shooting performances, it is no surprise they have fallen two games behind.

They now face a mountain ahead of them to turn this series around and will have to focus on these three aspects of their game to do so.

#1 Find a way to stop Luka Doncic

Luka Doncic is putting on a show for the LA Clippers currenlty.

There's not a lot more the LA Clippers can do at the moment to stop Luka Doncic and perhaps there is nothing they can do. The 22-year-old has twice come out and destroyed the Clippers defense in their own gym, proving to be a nuisance for defenders Kawhi Leonard, Patrick Beverley and Paul George.

Even when the Clippers have double and triple-teamed him, Doncic has been able to find his teammates. Considering also that those teammates are sinking shots and helping the Slovenian out on the offensive end, it is difficult for Ty Lue to know what to do.

39 points for @luka7doncic.2-0 lead for @dallasmavs.Series shifts to Dallas on Friday at 9:30pm/et on ESPN.. #NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/n51k893CU8

— NBA (@NBA) May 26, 2021

In game 2, Doncic had his choice of defenders. He often gets the switch he wants onto Patrick Beverley - who has looked too small in their matchups - and he looks too quick and skillful against Kawhi Leonard. Kawhi, however, has to be the LA Clippers' go-to option in guarding the Slovenian going forward. Marcus Morris disappointed on Tuesday by fouling out while Paul George was bullied by Doncic.

For the LA Clippers to succeed, they either have to force other Mavs players to make plays or keep Doncic from attacking the paint. Although he had another stellar season, he is not prolific from downtown, scoring 35% of efforts. Restricting Doncic and forcing him to operate from beyond the arc could come in handy for the Clippers. In game 2 he shot at 38% from three and across both matchups only made 42% of his 14 free-throw efforts.

#2 Shoot the three-ball better

LA Clippers leaders Kawhi Leonard and Paul George

The Dallas Mavericks are shooting lights out at the moment from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the Clippers are not. In game 1, they shot 11-40 from downtown. This improved slightly to 13-33 in game 2, though on both occasions this wasn't enough to overcome the Mavs' immense efficiency and was well below their own season average.

During the regular season campaign, no team shot the ball above 40% except for the LA Clippers. Even their bench rotation led the league in 3-point percentage (40.9%). However, in the series so far, they have looked well off the pace. Marcus Morris, usually a reliable shooter, missed his first nine threes in the series before making two in a row on Tuesday. Their shooting touch will come, and fans will hope it does sooner rather than later before it becomes too late.

#3 Show up in clutch moments

LA Clippers' Paul George goes in for dunk

One of the LA Clippers' biggest weaknesses this season was their inability to show up in clutch moments. Unfortunately, it appears that pattern has continued into the playoffs. While the Dallas Mavericks have improved their clutch-time scoring from 7.5 across 33 matchups to 10 in the postseason, the Clippers have regressed. They recorded a league-low 6.2 per game in the regular season but have scored just 1 point across their two games in clutch moments so far.

Paul George. "We have to rise to the occasion. Fact of the matter is if we don’t, we’re done for. But there’s no level of concern."

— Andrew Greif (@AndrewGreif) May 26, 2021

In their average of 3 minutes in clutch moments over the two games, the Clippers had a +/- of -9 and shot the ball at 14% from the field. During the season, they shot the three-ball at just 34% in the final stages of games.

If the LA Clippers want to advance, they need to overcome their mental block in the 4th quarter. Those small margins become far more pertinent in the playoffs when everything is on the line, and currently it only looks like the Dallas Mavericks are up to the challenge mentally.