The Dallas Mavericks will face the Utah Jazz in the 1st round of the NBA Playoffs.
The NBA Playoffs are almost upon us, as all the basketball fans around the world look forward to the best month of the season, with teams fighting to win the Championship.
In the 1st round of the playoffs in the Western Conference, The Dallas Mavericks will be up against the Utah Jazz, in a playoff series that promises to be a nail-biter.
This is the matchup between the 4th and 5th seed of the Western Conference, with Dallas Mavericks having the advantage of home court because they finished with a better record than the Utah Jazz.
- Dallas Mavericks finished the regular season with a record of 52-30.
- Utah Jazz finished the regular season with a record of 49-33.
Players unavailable for the series:
Dallas Mavericks:
- Tim Hardaway Jr. – Foot Injury.
Utah Jazz:
- Udoka Azubuike – Ankle Injury.
What to expect from both the teams in this series?
The Utah Jazz has faced huge disappointment in the past two seasons when it comes to playoffs, as last year they lost a game 7 at home to a Clippers team who were without Kawhi Leonard, which was a massive blow for them.
Prior to the last season, The Jazz had choked a 3-1 lead in the bubble to the Denver Nuggets which was a massive disappointment for them because Donovan Mitchell was on an absolute tear during that series.
This year they need to perform well and make a deep playoff run, otherwise, we can see some major changes happening in their roster and the coaching staff prior to the next season.
The Dallas Mavericks were sent back home twice in the 1st round in successive seasons by the Los Angeles Clippers due to the sheer brilliance of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, but they had shown the world that their team is going in the right direction.
Luka Doncic has had an MVP caliber season so far, and we all know how great he is come playoff time, as he becomes absolutely unguardable which was well seen in the series against the Clippers.
However, there is a big question mark on the availability of Luka in the 1st game of the series, as he suffered a calf injury in the last game of the regular season, and his fitness will have a big impact on this series.
Prediction:
- If Luka Doncic is available to play, the Dallas Mavericks will win this series and progress to the 2nd round of the playoffs.
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