[3] Oklahoma City Thunder vs [6] Dallas Mavericks
The most important factor in the games between these two teams is going to be the tempo of the game. For the final month or so of the regular season, the veteran squad of the Mavericks have been playing a very slow pace of basketball, limiting their turnovers and getting up a high percentage shot on almost every possession. At the same time, the Thunder are the worst team in the league when it comes to forcing turnovers.
Mastermind Rick Carlisle, Head Coach of the Dallas Mavericks, will surely pull up some defensive schemes in the slow pace game to trouble triple-double machine Russell Westbrook and try his best to reduce Westbrook’s impact on the game.
Over the course of the season, Westbrook has shown signs of not being able to efficiently contribute in the fourth quarters while playing against great defensive teams. Going up against rookie NBA Head Coach Billy Donovan, Carlisle has the upper hand in this coaching contest.
Having said that, this is the perfect opportunity for Oklahoma City to make a statement with a sweep and push themselves to the same stratosphere as the Golden State Warriors and the San Antonio Spurs.
On paper and on the court in terms of the personnel, the Thunder have a huge advantage but can they execute when it matters and seal the game? Mind you, OKC have given away 14 games (most in the league) where they lead.
Prediction: Oklahoma City Thunder win in 5 games
Guess the Lakers players!
