The Dallas Mavericks missed their opportunity to take a firm grip on their first-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Clippers, losing Game 4 with a score of 116-111 on Sunday, April 29, at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.
The Clippers have evened the series at two wins apiece heading into Game 5, and Mavericks star Luka Doncic has expressed dissatisfaction with his performance compared to teammate Kyrie Irving.
"I just got to help him more. I feel like I'm letting him down, so I got to be there, I got to help him more. He's giving everything he has and he's been amazing for us the whole series," the 25-year-old said during the post-game interview.
Irving is averaging 28.8 points while shooting 51.3 percent from the floor and 48.5 percent from deep against the Clippers, which included a 40-point explosion in Game 4.
On the other hand, Doncic is averaging 29.0 points but has gotten them in an inefficient manner, shooting just 38.6 percent from the floor and 26.5 percent from beyond the arc in the series.
Mavericks fall short of record-NBA playoff comeback
The Mavericks nearly orchestrated a historic NBA playoff comeback by rallying from a 31-point first-half deficit. Irving made a difficult layup with around two minutes left to give them a 105-104 lead.
This would have tied the playoff NBA record for the largest comeback, ironically achieved by the Clippers against the Golden State Warriors in Game 2 of their 2019 first-round series.
However, the Clippers managed to avoid being on the wrong side of history with timely baskets from stars Paul George and James Harden to hold on to the win.
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