Clippers' Paul George: Luka, Kyrie's Experience Gives Mavs 'Advantage' vs. Thunder

Even though the Oklahoma City Thunder are off to a strong start in the Western Conference semifinals against the Dallas Mavericks after a 117-95 in Game 1, one player on the team the Mavs beat in round one thinks they are still set up to advance.

On the latest episode of Wave Sports + Entertainment's Podcast P (starts at 25:12 mark), Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George said Dallas has "the advantage" in the series because of the experience Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving have in playoff games.

"It's tough. I actually think Dallas has the advantage," George said. "I think Oklahoma has upside. Dallas [has] the advantage because you have two superstars that have been in tough playoff environments, tough playoff games, they know how to rise to the occasion, they know how to score. I think for the Oklahoma City team, a lot of their guys, this is like their first playoff showing that they [are] now [in the] second round, it's more media, it's more coverage, it's bigger games, lights are brighter. But I do think the upside of it is [Oklahoma's] still young, they're still figuring this all out and yet they're still winning being a young team. But they do have the depth I think for how young they are, they have one of the deepest benches in the league. Honestly, it's tough, it's a toss-up. I like both teams in this situation but I don't know, man. I think it's like you talk about these young guys squaring off against each other. This is a pecking of Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander] versus Luka [Dončić]. You get that debate of the next young wave. Anthony Edwards is in that conversation as well. This is the debate of who's the next young star and I think we were about to witness a really good matchup."

One factor working against the Mavericks right now is a knee injury that Dončić has been dealing with for most of the playoffs. Head coach Jason Kidd told reporters on April 30 that his star guard has a sprained knee.

Dončić hasn't looked like himself throughout the playoffs. The five-time All-Star is averaging 28.3 points, 9.4 assists and 8.4 rebounds in seven games, but he's only shooting 39.5 percent overall and 22.7 percent from three-point range.

The Thunder's youth and lack of playoff experience was a talking point in the weeks leading up to the postseason. They entered this season as the second-youngest team in the NBA with an average age of 24.12 years old.

Historically, youth hasn't been a harbinger of playoff success. Going by weighted age, which uses a formula to give more credence to playing time, the only team from the 21st century that ranks in the top 10 youngest teams to win a title is the 2014-15 Golden State Warriors (26.393 weighted years).

Per Dan Treacy of Sporting News, the weighted age for the 2023-24 Thunder is 23.9 years.

This would make them the youngest team ever by weighted age to win a title. The 1976-77 Portland Trail Blazers (24.199) currently own the top spot. No other team has won the title with a weighted age under 25.

Since struggling in Game 1 of the first round against the New Orleans Pelicans before squeezing out a 94-92 win, the Thunder won the next four playoff contests by an average of 20.8 points per game.

Oklahoma City will look to extend its playoff winning streak to six games when it hosts the Mavs in Game 2 on Thursday at 9:30 p.m. ET.