James Harden was the hero of the night. Somehow, the LA Clippers figured out a way to escape Dallas with a win in Game 4 to tie the series 2-2 without Kawhi Leonard. None of that would have happened without the heroics of Paul George and James Harden, especially Harden's fourth-quarter heroics.

Paul George and James Harden are two-for-two without Kawhi Leonard in the Los Angeles Clippers' first-round playoff series against Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and the Dallas Mavericks. The healthy LA stars can afford to shrug over the blown 31-point lead in Game 4.

With Kawhi Leonard out due to knee inflammation (after two games back), Paul George took charge early. The Clippers raced out to a fast lead that reached 20 points by the end of the first quarter and 31 points midway through the second quarter. It looked like we could have another playoff blowout game.