Luka Doncic Rival Speaks on Mavs' Klay Thompson Signing: 'He Just Wants Freedom'

AUG 12 PAT BEV SPEAKS ON KLAY IN DALLAS Patrick Beverley has a long history of being Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic's rival due to his pesky defensive efforts when the two meet on the court. However, Beverley has been complimentary of Doncic in recent years, cooling off the rivalry some.

Recently, Beverley joined The OGs Show and gave his thoughts on another Mavs topic: Klay Thompson leaving the Golden State Warriors to sign in Dallas.

"I didn't see that coming, but again, he took less money," Beverley said. "He just wants freedom. I wanna be able to hoop. For him to have an ability to be a bail-out guy at the third option, yes [it's freedom]."

With Doncic and Kyrie Irving taking on the majority of the scoring load for Dallas, Thompson certainly has less pressure on him than he did with a Warriors team that was struggling to live up to its dynasty reputation the last two years. We'll see how much Thompson's newfound "freedom" affects his play during the 2023-24 season.

AUG 12 NBA PLAYOFF REMATCH FOR MAVS The Dallas Mavericks will face a familiar playoff foe on Oct. 14. According to NBA insider Marc Stein , the Los Angeles Clippers ' debut game in the Intuit Dome will come against the Mavericks. The last time the Mavericks played the Clippers occurred in the 2024 NBA playoffs. Dallas beat the Clippers 4-2 in the first round, beating the Clippers in convincing fashion in Game 6.

While the Mavericks recently beat the Clippers in the playoffs, the franchise is still behind regarding postseason matchups. Los Angeles has the upper hand, winning two of three playoff matchups in 2020 and 2021.

The Clippers host the Phoenix Suns in their regular season debut at the new building on Oct. 23.

AUG 11 'NO ENTERTAINMENT' BALL IN EUROPE? Dennis Schroder has made quite a name for himself in FIBA basketball in the last few years.Although Germany finished fourth in men's Olympic basketball, the veteran NBA point guard displays a solid commitment to his native nation. Germany defeated Serbia 83-77 in the 2023 FIBA World Cup.

However, Schroder's recent Olympic performance earned him a spot in the All-Star Five. He averaged 17 points and 7.5 assists and shot an efficient 39 percent from behind the three-point line.

Schroder's respect for European basketball bled into a recent postgame press conference. Germany's star point guard discussed the difference between European leagues and the NBA.

The Brooklyn Nets point guard admitted that the NBA is the best league in the world but that the "Europeans are coming."

Watch the video here .