Kyrie and an improved Luka tilted Clippers-Mavs playoff trilogy

In recent years, an exciting rivalry has been brewing between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Dallas Mavericks.

Its first seed was sown in the 2020 Orlando Bubble, and the two Western Conference teams have faced each other two more times in the playoffs since then.

The record between the two teams in recent years tilts in favor of the Clippers, who have a 2-1 lead. But the addition of Kyrie Irving gave Luka Doncic the perfect teammate and took the Mavericks to a whole new level. In the first round of the 2024 playoffs, Dallas was in complete control, defeating Ty Lue and crew in six games.

In the lead-up to that series, former NBA player Gilbert Arenas appeared on the Night Cap podcast with Shannon Sharpe to discuss the matchups and preview what might transpire.

Agent Zero was convinced that the Mavs, led by their Slovenian superstar, would get the job done.

"Luka owns them," said the former three-time All-Star . "Last ten games alone, he's averaged 37 against them. If the Clippers wanna get out of this series, there is only one person that you have to even focus on, but this man is Superman when he's playing you guys."

KyLuka tilt balance toward Mavericks

Arenas was right. Luka has always been a problem for the Clippers, especially during playoffs. In their 19 postseason games, the Slovenian superstar has posted video game numbers, averaging 32.4 PPG, 9.5 APG, and 8.8 RPG.

While Luka was phenomenal individually, before last season, he always fell short against the Clippers. That changed with the arrival of Uncle Drew, who provided timely support to the reigning scoring champion at crucial moments of the series. Kyrie played the perfect anchor, averaging 26.5 PPG, 5.7 RPG, and 4.7 APG on shooting splits of 51/44/85.

Double-team the only solution for Luka

Arenas did have one suggestion for the Clippers to mitigate the damage done by Doncic's unstoppable offensive game. Gilbert advised Ty Lue to guide his team to send two defenders at Luka as soon as he touches the ball. "I'm gonna throw a double at him earlier," Arenas said.

The Clippers did try that, but nonetheless, the Luka-Kyrie duo took care of matters, leading the Dallas team past LA in the first round and all the way to an NBA Finals appearance.

Related: Ranking the best seasons in Clippers franchise history