NBA Finals Review
#1) Boston Celtics vs #5) Dallas Mavericks
(BOS wins 4-1)
CHAMPIONS! Congratulations to the 2024 NBA Champion Boston Celtics. Silencing the critics, the Celtics finally got over the hump and regained their place as the winningest franchise in NBA history. Their 18th NBA championship, 11 of those won by Bill Russell before 1969, breaks the previous tie between the Celtics and Lakers at 17. Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum have been to the Eastern Conference Finals six of the last eight years with little hardware to show for it, and finally, they break through. Finishing the regular season with a league-best 64-18 record, running through the playoffs, and finishing 16-3 is no easy feat. Their postseason winning percentage of 84.2% matched the best in franchise history, set by the Larry Bird-led 1986 Celtics. Their regular season winning percentage(.780) is the 25th-best in NBA history. In 19 games, the 2023-2024 Celtics defeated their opponents by at least 25 points, including 17 in the regular season and two in the playoffs. Three times this season, they’ve beaten a team by at least 50 points and once by 40.
Going into this series, most assumed it would go six, maybe even seven games, regardless of your preferred victor. Many believed this series would be the first real challenge of the post-season for the Celtics, and boy, were we wrong.
Coming out in Game 1, the Celtics wasted no time, immediately setting the record for the largest lead after a quarter, a 17-point, 37-20 first-quarter lead, and never looking back. Kristaps Porzingus, Jaylen Brown, and Jrue Holiday led the way for the Celtics, setting the tone defensively and taking care of business on the offensive end. Porzingus returned from injury after 38 days and scored 20 points, which was the difference maker in the game and, consequently, the series. In their Game 1 victory, the Celtics became the first team in NBA Finals history to have seven players make at least two 3-pointers.
In Game 2, the Mavericks realized the Finals had started; they came out more energetic and locked in. Luka Doncic was more efficient and scored 23 points in the first half, but the Celtics still led, as Jrue Holiday and Jaylen Brown kept the momentum from Game 1 rolling into Game 2 with much-needed contributions from Derrick White and Jayson Tatum, to name a few. Porzingus exited Game 2 with an injury, but, in hindsight, that would not change much.
The Boston Celtics were getting contributions from everyone, while the Mavericks struggled to find consistency, which ultimately became the difference in this series. Before Game 3, no Maverick had hit more than one 3-pointer besides Luka Doncic. On the contrary, seven Celtics hit at least one 3-pointer to that point. With Luka fouling out in Game 3 thanks to a blocking foul drawn by Jaylen Brown, the Mavs stood no chance as Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum became the first Celtics duo to score at least 30 points, five rebounds, and five assists in the NBA Finals.
Faced with elimination in Game 4, the Mavericks won to see another day, as we almost escaped a series without an infamous Boston meltdown game. In each series, you can practically guarantee that the Boston Celtics will look inexplicably bad for at least one game and/or lose a game they have no business losing. That was Game 4. The Celtics found themselves on the wrong side of history, losing by the third-largest margin in NBA Finals history, 38, and at one point being down by a whopping 48 points.
Game 5 was all she wrote, as the Boston Celtics won convincingly to put a cap on one of the most dominant seasons ever.
NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown had many shining moments this series, from his suffocating, unforgiving defense on Luka and Kyrie to his cold blooded, go-ahead daggers in the clutch. Although Jayson Tatum did not shoot very well in this series, he found other ways to be productive. Tatum became the sixth player since 1980 to win a title while leading his team in points, rebounds and assists in the playoffs. Jrue Holiday and Derrick White also were pivotal contributors.
Were the NBA Finals a disappointment? Are the Boston Celtics an all-time great team? Comment your thoughts below!