The Dallas Mavericks take on the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. The Mavericks finished as the fifth seed, while the Clippers ended in fourth. It should be a heated battle between these two organizations.

This series is loaded with stars. Luka Doncic leads the way in Dallas and is already one of the best players in the NBA at just 22 years old. His teammate Kristaps Porzingis is one of the better power forwards as well and could be in for a big series. As for Los Angeles, they have Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, who are both phenomenal scorers and defenders.

The Clippers are the favorite to win the series, but the Mavericks have the tools necessary to pull off the upset. To do so, the entire roster will have to step up, as the Clippers have one of the best lineups in the league. With that said, here are three reasons why the Mavericks will beat the Clippers in the 2021 NBA Playoffs.

Luka Doncic

Obviously, Doncic is going to play a vital role in the Mavericks' success. Averaging 27.7 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 8.6 assists per game, Luka has been the driving force of the Mavericks' offense. Even though he's the size of a small forward, the Mavericks have him play point guard, as the team performs at their best with the ball in his hands.

He has his work cut out for him in this matchup, as Leonard and George are two of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA right now. Doncic will be forced to face off against both throughout this series and could prove to be the downfall of the Mavericks. Even so, Dallas will utilize Doncic to the fullest extent.

The Mavericks efficiency

Surprisingly, the Mavericks are a rather efficient team. This has been the main reason why they finished with a 42-30 record this year. According to the official NBA website, the Mavericks ranked 13th in field goal shooting (47%) and third in turnovers (12.1 per game). The Clippers shot 48.2% from the field this year, just over 1% better than the Mavericks.

The lack of turnovers is the key to the Mavericks' success though. If they can maintain possession of the ball, Dallas could wear down the Clippers defense by game four. Luka can't do it all by himself, so he'll need his teammates to hit their shots. Otherwise, Dallas could be bounced out early.

Porzingis the X-Factor

Kristaps Porzingis hit his career off with a bang while playing for the New York Knicks. Since then, he's cooled off a bit but is still a great player that compliments Luka Doncic well. Averaging 20.1 points and 8.9 rebounds per game, Porzingis has been a great second option in Dallas.

For the Mavericks to win this series though, the “Unicorn” has to take advantage of the mismatch opportunity. The Clippers' post players are not the best defensively and Serge Ibaka has played more as a role player off of the bench since joining LA. The Clippers' lack of strength down low should allow for Porzingis to regain his dominance once again. We haven't seen that fire in him since being traded to Dallas, but this is a fantastic moment for Porzingis to take advantage of.