The first glimpse of things to come when the Los Angeles Clippers and the Dallas Mavericks was finally seen and everything was as rowdy as expected.
The matchup was heated a bit as expected, especially for folks who caught those mini altercations that involved flying elbows between DeAndre Jordan and Dirk Nowitzki.
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Right now those are only previews of things to come so expect more emotionally-charged clashes between the two, particularly when they play at Dallas.
So are these two developing a rivalry of sorts?
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If you ask Dallas Mavericks team owner Mark Cuban, he doesn’t consider the Clippers as chief rivals. In fact he delivered a curious statement to media after the game.
"Look, the Clippers are the Clippers," Cuban said via ESPN. "You can change the players, you can change the owner, but the Clippers are who they've been for the last 30 years.”
If Cuban didn’t have any reason to hide any bad blood on the LA Clippers, that statement could easily pass for nothing. But the thing is, there is that DeAndre Jordan drama to think about.
Remember how Jordan spurned the Mavericks offer and u-turned back to the Clips? Remember how DJ got criticized for not telling Cuban up front of his change of heart?
Apparently there is a lot of color between the two teams involving that celebrated offseason drama and such is expected to carry on from here. Somehow one has the feeling that at some point, something has got to give and it may not be pretty.
Regardless, the Clippers drew first blood with that 104-88 rout over the Mavericks. While the Clippers were favored to get this one with a souped-up lineup, one cannot overlook the fact that the Mavericks are no pushovers this season.
Battling a talented squad with a depleted lineup and losing by just six points is as good as a win. For those who were able to watch the game, the Mavericks did put up a good fight and threatened multiple times.
So are the Mavericks out of it this season? Not by a long shot.
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