Luka Doncic entered Game 5 of the NBA playoff series against the LA Clippers with a knee sprain, but he came up big to lead the Dallas Mavericks to a 123-93 blowout victory. The Mavs are up 3-2 with the series heading to Dallas for Game 6.
Doncic was determined to back Kyrie Irving after an underwhelming for Luka’s standards performance in the Game 4 loss. Doncic scored 20 of his 35 points in the second half adding 10 assists and seven rebounds to conclude an amazing performance that was backed by an amazing defensive effort.
The Clippers suffered the biggest margin of defeat in their history in the NBA playoffs, while Dallas need one more win to claim its first playoff series victory since 2022. It will be the third time they would have won a series since winning the NBA championship in 2011.
Luka Doncic has been dealing with several issues including being under the weather entering this week and dealing with a knee sprain that limited his movement. Kyrie Irving added 14 points for the Mavericks in a game that the margin picked to 25 and eventually entered the fourth quarter up by 89-69.
Dallas never looked back and took the advantage in the series with Game 6 taking place Friday and if required, Game 7 is set to take place on Sunday in Los Angeles.
In Boston, the Celtics dominated the contest against the Miami Heat from start to finish as their lead was never in doubt to beat the visiting team 118-84. The Celtics advanced to the second round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs as they took revenge for losing to the Heat in the last season playoffs.
Jaylen Brown and Derrick White each scored 25 points and the Celtics advanced to the NBA Eastern Conference semifinals. Boston will face the winner of the Cleveland-Orlando series. The Cavs are up 3-2 going to a Game 6 in Orlando on Friday night.
NBA Playoffs Recap (2/5)
Miami Heat (8) vs Boston Celtics (1) 84-118 (1-4)
Dallas Mavericks (5) vs LA Clippers (4) 123-93 (3-2)
