6 Dallas Mavericks players who must play better to beat the Clippers

Entering Game 5 tonight, the Dallas Mavericks and LA Clippers are tied 2-2 in the craziest series of the 2024 NBA Playoffs.

Sunday brought us the wildest game of the series as Dallas battled all the way back from being down by 31 points, but they couldn't hold on in the end as the Clippers won 116-111. The Mavs had the chance in this game to take a commanding 3-1 series lead, but now they have to beat the Clippers in two of the next three games.

If Dallas can avoid a slow start in Game 5 while playing sound defense for four quarters, they should be able to grab a win.

6 Dallas Mavericks players who must play better to beat the Clippers

Dallas has arguably outplayed LA in every quarter outside the opening quarters of Games 1 and 4, and they must come out hot to avoid going down 3-2.

While many of the Mavs players' play has taken a step up in the playoffs, there are a handful of players who need to pour in just a little more for the Mavs to grab a series win.

Here are five Dallas Mavericks players who must play better for them to beat the LA Clippers in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs,

6. Josh Green

With just a couple of games remaining in the regular season, Josh Green returned to the Dallas Mavericks lineup as he was out with an ankle sprain. The team was on a roll even with Green out of the lineup, but it was clear that Green was going to be an X-factor in this series as they needed someone to step up due to Tim Hardaway Jr.'s struggles.

Now that Hardaway Jr. is out with an ankle sprain, the Mavs need Green to step up even more. Through four playoff games, Green is averaging 3.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 30 percent from the field and 16.7 percent from downtown.

While Green's defense has been respectable, they need him to be better offensively. Green shot 38.5 percent from three during the regular season and the Mavs need more reliable shooting around Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic.

Green is getting plenty of good looks, he just hasn't been able to cash them in.

All of the Mavs role players will need to step up to close this series out against the LA Clippers, and Green has been unreliable offensively in the first half of this series.