On Sunday afternoon, the Los Angeles Clippers stunned the NBA community by soundly defeating the Dallas Mavericks at home in the absence of Kawhi Leonard. LA won straight up by a margin of up to 29 points. A stunning victory is accompanied by even more surprising insights.
Charles Barkley ripped the Mavericks after the game on Inside the NBA. He quickly made a comparison between them and the Indiana Pacers, who were behind by more than 20 points as well.
“The Clippers are always going to play hard, they’re like the Miami Heat, they’re always going to play hard,” Barkley stated. “I feel like Dallas and the Pacers are in the same situation. When the offense is humming and everything looks beautiful, they’re going to beat you offensively and defensively – the Pacers are no different.”
In the ensuing episode, Barkley intensified his criticism of the Mavericks. He even declared the Mavericks to be the front-runners.
“You have to have a plan B, you can’t just say we’re going to win offensively and not play any defense,” Barkley stated. “The Mavericks are favorites; they perform exceptionally well when things are going well. Anything may go wrong when things return to normal.”
Despite how disappointing Game 1 was for the Dallas Mavericks, it is far too soon to judge them according to Charles Barkley’s current standards. Since this is just Game 1, anything may happen. In 2021, the Clippers fell behind Dallas after dropping their opening two games at home before rallying to win.
