The Los Angeles Clippers survived a seven-game series with the Dallas Mavericks. Their reward is a date with the Utah Jazz.

The Jazz entered the playoffs as the best team in the NBA, though they had to withstand some early drama. Donovan Mitchell was held out of Game 1, prompting some frustration on his behalf after the Memphis Grizzlies stunned Utah in the series opener. Trouble in paradise? Hardly.

Utah rolled to four consecutive wins, with Mitchell showing no reservations with his ankle and the rest of his teammates exhibiting the kind of balance that made the Jazz the NBA's best team during the regular season.

The Clippers will pose a tough challenge for the Jazz in the conference semifinals. Utah must contend with a pair of superstars in Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Los Angeles is also battle-tested, having overcome a 2-0 hole and a separate 3-2 deficit against the Mavs.

Still, Utah has real advantages over the Clippers. Here are three reasons the Jazz will oust LA to reach their first conference finals series since 2007.

3. Jazz have heavy screen-and-roll action

One of the reasons the Clippers struggled with the Mavs had to do with the success Dallas had in pick-and-roll action.

Clippers defenders, at times, got lazy in hedging or switching. That defensive effort often allowed Luka Doncic to get ideal one-on-one matchups or make plays for his teammates when getting into the paint. Doncic especially had success targeting Clippers center Ivica Zubac early in the series.

Well, the Jazz run a lot of screen-and-rolls. Utah has an even higher frequency of pick-and-roll action than the Mavs in these playoffs. The Jazz ranked seventh in that category during the regular season. It's going to be very challenging for the Clippers to contend with Utah's ball-handlers and versatile bigs.

Mitchell and Mike Conley can sit behind screens and knock down triples while also having the capacity to make plays off the dribble and get to the rack. Jordan Clarkson is usually better served getting to his spots in isolation, but can still make plays in screen-and-roll. Joe Ingles is a hassle because he has a large frame and can see over the defense.

Utah's bigs make things more difficult for opposing defenses. Royce O'Neale can shoot the 3 at a high level, as can Georges Niang off the bench. Conversely, both Rody Gobert and Derrick Favors excel at diving to the rim.

The Clippers are going to have to solve Utah's pick-and-roll system. They also have to do so while acknowledging the Jazz have multiple shot creators.

2. More balance

The last paragraph is a nice little segue into this section.

It's little surprise at this stage Mavs superstar Luka Doncic was essentially on his own against the Clippers. He had to create an overwhelming amount of offense for Dallas, with the team's offensive rating plummeting nearly 30 points per 100 possessions when he was not on the floor.

Los Angeles never truly solved Doncic. But it at least had time to try and make adjustments while not having to worry much about his teammates generating their own offense. However, the Jazz have far more balance and depth.

As previously mentioned, the Jazz have multiple ball-handlers who can operate in pick-and-roll and break defenders down off the dribble. They can get into the lane and spot shooters for jumpers, find Gobert for lobs or finish at the rim themselves. This includes Bojan Bogdanovic, who is probably underrated in leveraging his size to get into the lane and score in the midrange or at the rim.

The bench features both scorers and key contributors. Ingles is a legitimate point forward who can fill it up from deep. Clarkson excels getting to the rim and scoring in the midrange area. Niang and Favors have different skill sets that both serve to benefit Utah especially on the offensive end.

Conley's mild hamstring strain could have a bit of an impact, but the Jazz have multiple guys who can play a combo guard role.

We've mostly focused on offense to this stage. Of course, the Jazz are an elite defensive team as well. They ranked fourth in defensive rating during the regular season. Gobert's presence in the paint makes things incredibly tough for slashers, while O'Neale is invaluable as a guy who can switch onto speedier guards or shot creators on the perimeter.

Utah ranked first in net rating during the regular season. The Jazz get scoring and playmaking off the bench and can mix-and-match rotations. That depth and balance will be tough for a Clippers team still seemingly trying to figure out its ideal playoff rotation.

1. Perimeter onslaught

The Jazz were gunners during the regular season.

Utah led the NBA in 3s attempted and made during the regular season, also ranking fourth in 3-point percentage. This 3-point barrage was on full display against the Grizzlies.

The Jazz averaged a whopping 41.4 triples per game in their five-game series win over Memphis. That is the highest mark of any first-round series, including the 3-point happy Portland Trail Blazers. Moreover, Utah was efficient in its attempts. The Jazz shot 40.4 percent from beyond the arc against the Grizzlies.

That kind of perimeter onslaught will be difficult for the Clippers to deal with. Los Angeles had plenty success against the Mavs when defending the 3-ball. The Clippers held Dallas to 10-for-36 shooting from deep in Game 7, for example.

But again, the Jazz have far more balance than the Mavericks. Just about everyone in the playoff rotation — save for Gobert and Favors — shoots the 3 pretty efficiently. If the Clippers cannot stop Utah's ball-handlers from getting into the lane in pick-and-roll, LA might also be hard-pressed to limit drive-and-kick looks for open Jazz shooters.

Expect Utah to spread the Clippers out on the defensive end. Mitchell, Conley and Clarkson will try to get to the rack and challenge the likes of Zubac and LA's other bigs. The Jazz will probably force Leonard to work through tons of on-ball screens and do what they can to suck the Clippers in while also bombing away from deep.