DALLAS, TEXAS — The Dallas Mavericks bubble burst Sunday afternoon as they were defeated by the Los Angeles Clippers 111-97 in game 6 of the NBA Playoffs. Mavs Head Coach Rick Carlisle said, “I feel like we had a very productive year and a lot was accomplished. It’s hard to put your hands around everything at this particular moment. Getting back to the playoffs is very significant. Being 11 games over .500 in the regular season is significant. We didn’t win a lot of games in the seeding games, but we went through some great experiences.
Mavericks Guard Luka Dončić had a team-high 38 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists. Dončić said, “I am proud of our team and how we fought. I think we fought till the end but the Clippers have an amazing team so it was hard. I think we gave everything and played especially hard in the playoffs. I am proud of our guys.”
Kawhi Leonard recorded 33 points, 14 rebounds, 7 assists and 5 steals in 40 minutes for the Clippers. This is Leonard’s fifth straight playoff game with at least 30 points, marking a new career-long.
Dallas finishes their season 43-32 in the regular season and 2-4 in the playoffs. Los Angeles will advance past the first round for the first time since the 2014-15 season and face the winner of Utah and Denver (Utah leads 3-2).
