It is starting to do a lot for Doc Rivers and the Clippers. Among the favorites for the title, they just lost their second game in the series to the Mavericks. A Game 4 which seemed yet mastered by Californians, until a 21-year-old blonde rolled over them. Dirty evening for the Doc, who still does not understand the mental weakness of his players. At the same time, mEner 21 points and lose at the end, it’s true that it messes the balls.
The Clippers had the opportunity to go 3-1 in their series against the Mavs, eh bah it’s missed. A wild Luka appears, and it’s 2-2 in a totally restarted series. The worst part is that the Angelinos had the game in hand quietly with a 21-point advantage in the second quarter, enough to piss off Doc Rivers. A contender who chokes such an advantage in a Playoffs match? Without Kristaps Porzingis opposite? This is the kind of thing that goes wrong. By dint of playing in flip-flops all season, inevitably, we take bad habits, and the Doc did not fail to scratch his players in the post-match conference, via ESPN :
“Honestly, I think we were mentally very weak tonight. I don’t know why, I’m not Sigmund Freud. But the result is that we lead by 20 points and we take technical faults. These are the kinds of things that make the opponent happy. Basically – and I’ve been saying this for the last three games – we’re so much better than that. But honestly, Dallas has to be given credit. They had to do without Porzingis, but they continued to play. They played together, they made the ball move. You could see the difference in the spirit. […] We are all at fault, including me. “
As we can see, Doctor Rivers did not appreciate the lack of discipline of his players when the Mavs returned to the game. On the one hand, a less talented team but playing hard, and on the other, a team that is slacking off and is far from evolving at the expected defensive level. It could happen in the regular season, but to win in the Playoffs, you have to put the flip-flops definitely in the closet, and that, for Clippers used to the beach in Santa Monica, it’s not always easy. In addition, it is enough that some of their stars (yes, we are talking about you, “Playoffs P”) are not there, and that’s two defeats in four games. So, at 2-2, nothing dramatic so far, the Clippers have plenty of means to get back to the place to bang their fists on the table, but a bad surprise quickly arrived. The holidays are over, you have to get down to work seriously.
Doc Rivers is not Sigmund Freud, but Doc Rivers will still have to find a solution to reboost his players. Paul George must stop watching Michael Kidd-Gilchrist VHS and get back to playing as an MVP candidate. In short, the Clippers will have to play basketball seriously to continue the adventure in the bubble.
Text source: ESPN
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