LOS ANGELES — With a simplified game plan and physical mentality from the jump, the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Dallas Mavericks in Game 4 of their first-round series, 106-81. The series is now tied at 2-2 following dominant performances once again by Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, while Luka Doncic looked a lot more human.

The first blowout of this series came thanks to a lineup change on the Clippers' end that is expected to remain moving forward. Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue changed the starting lineup for the second straight game, inserting Nicolas Batum over Ivica Zubac as the new center. Call it the Clippers' version of the Warriors' “Death lineup.”

“Defensively, I thought [Batum] did a great job on Luka getting up the floor, trying to command the basketball, pressuring a little bit. He had a block or two, just flying around, so you know, Nico starting today allowed us to switch more and do more defensively and that's why we were able to hold them to 81 points tonight.”

Nicolas Batum finished with a very Draymond-esque stat line of 10 points, five rebounds, four steals, and two blocks in 36 minutes of play.

But what did Ty Lue see in Batum over the last couple games or, even throughout the year, that allowed him to start the Frenchman in a smaller Clippers lineup?

“They're just able to switch to guard 1 through 5,” Lue said after the win. “I think their IQ, being able to block shots, rebound the basketball, but also being able to break down off the dribble. They are a lot alike. Draymond, he's one of the best I've seen at playing the cat-and-mouse game, playing two guys, getting steals and then Draymond's physicality. I think Nico talked about that, just being physical like Draymond, on post-ups, on rebounds. He's been great all year and to start tonight after being down 2-1 and coming in and relying on him to start, I thought he was terrific. We want to continue to build off this.”

Batum's stellar play on the defensive end aside, Sunday was also another episode of the Kawhi and PG show on display.

Kawhi Leonard finished with another ultra-efficient scoring night of 29 points on 11-of-15 shooting from the field to go along with his 10 rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocked shots. Paul George added 20 points, nine rebounds, and three assists for the Clippers.

Through four games, Leonard is averaging 33.0 points on 62.7 percent shooting from the field and George is averaging 25.0 points on 50 percent shooting.

“I think we both have just done an incredible job complementing each other,” George said about his development playing alongside Leonard. “He's all-out driving, attacking, putting pressure on them, their bigs at the rim, and myself, as well. When he needs a break, when he needs a breather, now I'm in attack mode and I'm trying to give him a break.

“I think we're just doing a great job countering each other, and you know, it's fun. This is ultimately what we wanted to get to, being able to share the court together and do it on both ends.”

As Leonard and George continued to play well, Luka Doncic struggled for the first time in the series. He shot just 9-of-24 from the field, his first game of the series under 46 percent shooting, and also missed all five of his free-throw attempts. To his credit, Doncic didn't blame the nerve injury in his neck/shoulder area, which clearly has been bothering him since the middle of Game 3.

“I don't think that matters right now,” Doncic responded when asked about his injury. “We lost by 20. And the injuries are part of basketball, but I was 100 percent. So — but I played terrible. So just gotta move on to the next one.

“The pain is in the neck and then the nerve down. I don't even know how to explain that, but it felt way better today, this morning than yesterday. And I just keep doing massages, ice it down and be ready for Wednesday.”

With Game 5 set for Wednesday night, as Doncic mentioned, the Clippers remain hungry. They haven't done anything yet, and they know that. Kawhi Leonard plans to make sure his team maintains their level of urgency heading into the pivotal game in a few days.

“We've got to come out with a defensive mentality,” Leonard said. “Keep trusting each other on both ends of the floor. Play with pace, urgency on the defensive end. Limiting them to one shot, keeping our turnovers low.

“I think that we responded well [after being down 0-2]. … The job is not done yet, so we've got to keep having an even-keeled mindset and get ready for the next one.”

The winner of a Game 5 in a 2-2 series has upwards of an 80% of winning the series, so the importance of that game can't be emphasized enough.