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Boston Perseveres, Beats Dallas, 105-98

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Celtics Take 2-0 NBA Finals Lead; Series Switches to Dallas

By TERRY LYONS, Editor-in-Chief  of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – Unlike Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals when Boston came out shooting bulls-eyes, hitting three-pointers, running the floor, blocking shots and creating easy baskets off the break, Game 2 was cause for concern to the Celtics as they shot only 45% from the field and 26% from the three-point line. The Dallas Mavericks had made some adjustments and it resulted in a stagnant Celtics offense and very physical play.

Boston persevered through early adversity as All-Star forward Jayson Tatum scored 18 points, grabbed nine rebounds and had 12 assists – an impressive line – but struggled from the field, shooting 6-for-22 and 1-for-7 from downtown. Jaylen Brown picked up the slack, scoring 21 points but it was point guard Jrue Holiday who stepped up to lead the Celtics to a 105-98 victory and a 2-0 series lead.

Holiday scored a team high 26 points, adding 11 rebounds and three assists while giving Dallas point guard Kyrie Irving fits on the other end of the floor for the second consecutive game. Irving managed only 16 points and six assists, well below his 25.6 ppg regular season average.

The Boston victory did come with one set back, as center Kristaps Porzingis tweaked his sore calf which had sidelined him for a month leading into the NBA Finals. Porzingis labored up and down the court for three possessions before Boston coach Joe Mazulla sent Al Horford to the scorer’s table to return to action. Dallas was able to score an easy basket on Porzingis as he failed to get back on defense, making the score, 97-89 Boston.

Mazulla called time out to sub with 4:40 remaining in the game.

“Obviously something happened a little bit,” said Porzingis, “but I have a couple days [to get ready] again, and believe me, we’ll do everything we can to be back and moving.”

After a key Doncic turnover, Boston backcourt took over with Holiday making a 26-footer (100-89) and Derrick White following with the back-breaker for the Mavericks, a 26-footer to make it 103-89. Dallas fought back to make it 103-98 on a Doncic lay-up and subsequent free throw, but White blocked a PJ Washington lay-in and as Boston ran down the clock, Jaylen Brown scored on a short, three-footer to end the scoring with Boston up, 105-98.

Doncic had 32 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in the losing effort.

Boston took a 83-74 lead as the buzzer sounded to end the third quarter and reserve guard Payton Pritchard banked home a 34-footer after crossing center court with no Dallas defender within reach. It capped a 29-23 third quarter tally to extend the Celtics’ lead to nine. After Dallas coach Jason Kidd subbed-out Doncic at the 3:27 mark, Kidd was forced to call a timeout and re-insert his best player into the game as his only reliable scorer. Irving continued to struggle from the field and he failed to orchestrate the Mavericks on offense as the TD Garden crowd let him have it with the jeers.

Both teams played a hard-fought, physical first half and Boston led, 54-51, behind 17 first half points by Holiday. The half was marked by tough, physical defense and poor long distance shooting by both clubs.

Boston shot a horrid 20% (3-of-15) from three-point land while Dallas shot a slightly better 30.8% (4-of-13) from downtown. Doncic was 3-of-6 from 3-point range and scored 23 first half points and leading the team in minutes played despite his pregame downgrade to questionable with a thoracic contusion added to his injury report in addition to the right knee sprain and left ankle soreness he’s been playing through for all of the NBA postseason.

Pressure Builds on Celtics for Game 2

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown aren’t letting Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd create a rift between them ahead of Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night.

Kidd referred to Brown as Boston’s best player while speaking to reporters on Saturday. Whether he truly meant it or was simply trying to play mind games with the Celtics remains a mystery, but the comment didn’t elicit a reaction from Tatum or Brown.

“We understand that people try to drive a wedge in between us,” Tatum said. “Guess it’s a smart thing to do — or try to do. But we’ve been in this position for many years of guys trying to divide us and say that one of us should be traded or one’s better than the other. So it’s not our first time at the rodeo.”

Boston veteran Al Horford thought Kidd’s intentions were pretty clear.

“J-Kidd, man. I see what he’s doing,” Horford said. “Jaylen Brown is an unbelievable player … and very special for us.”

It will take a lot more than psychological warfare to slow down the Celtics if they manage to replicate their Game 1 performance. Boston cruised to a 107-89 victory on Thursday night, leading by as many as 29.

Brown finished with a team-high 22 points for the Celtics, while Kristaps Porzingis returned from a 10-game absence due to a calf strain to pour in 20 in 21 minutes off the bench. Tatum finished with 16 points, 11 rebounds and five assists.

Luka Doncic went for 30 points and 10 boards for Dallas, but Kyrie Irving was held to just 12 points on 6-of-19 shooting. Irving missed all five of his 3-point attempts and committed three turnovers while being taunted by Boston fans all night.

Irving is now 0-11 in his past 11 games against the Celtics, a losing streak that he is confident he can shed on Sunday.

“Just got to calm our nerves, poise our nerves a little bit and also just be aware of the environment that we’re in,” Irving said. “It’s going to be high intense from who we’re going against. It’s going to be very physical. Some things are going to be called, some things aren’t.

“So I think we got all that experience in Game 1, and we’re looking forward to the challenge in Game 2 to playing better, and being who we have been since post-All-Star break. … We’re the only two teams playing, so we’re proud of ourselves, but we’re not satisfied.”

Most of the Mavericks’ struggles stemmed from a lack of ball movement, as Dallas finished with only nine assists — the fewest by any team in a game this season. Kidd is hoping for a more fluid performance in Game 2.

“I thought we were too much one-on-one. We’ve got to move bodies. We’ve got to move the ball. Multiple guys got to touch the ball,” Kidd said. “We were just too stagnant, and that’s not the way we play. So, we’ve got to be better (Sunday).”

– Field Level Media

37-Day Layoff No Issue for Porzingis

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s veteran center Kristaps Porzingis wasn’t going to let a 37-day layoff slow him down during the biggest game of his NBA career.

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Playing in the NBA Finals for the first time, the Celtics big man returned from a 10-game absence to record 20 points off the bench and Boston snuffed a second-half rally to beat the Dallas Mavericks 107-89 on Thursday night in Game 1.

Porzingis hadn’t played since April 29 due to a right calf strain that he sustained during Game 4 of the Celtics’ first-round series against the Miami Heat. He quickly found his groove again, though, making 8 of 13 field-goal attempts while collecting six rebounds and three blocks in 21 minutes.

“Even if I have time off, I can jump right back in and I feel the same way,” Porzingis said. “I get to my spots … so whether it’s playoffs, regular season or whatever, I know how to do this. That’s it, just having that confidence, going out there whatever, first round or Finals, just going out there with full confidence and giving what I have to the team.”

Celtics Jump On Mavs in Game 1

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By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – There were two key questions coming into Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals.

  1. Would the Boston Celtics come out primed and well rested or flat after a nine day layoff resulting from a 4-0 sweep of the Indiana Pacers in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals?
  2. Would Celtics’ center Kristaps Porzingis be healthy and effective after a month long injury hiatus resulting from a strained calf?

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The answers for the Celtics became evident in the very first quarter of this championship series as the Celtics jumped out to a 37-20 advantage and Porzingis led the way with 16 points on 4-of-5 FG shooting, including 1-of-2 from three-point land, 2-of-2 from the line. Porzingis also grabbed three rebounds and blocked two important Dallas shots in the first quarter to set the defensive tone Boston thrived on throughout their league-leading regular season and 12-2 march to the Finals.

The final score of Boston 107, Dallas 89 further answered tho0se questions.

Dallas All-NBA star Luka Doncic slugged it out and managed to score 30 points on 12-of-26 field goal shooting, including a horrid 4-of-12 from 3-point range and sub par 2-of-5 from the free throw line.

Porzingis played 7:17 of the first quarter, looked agile and worked pain free, posting up his defenders, passing well, running the pick and roll and sprinting the length of the floor to hit the defensive boards. The effort allowed Boston to cruise to a 63-42 halftime lead and establish control over the game, allowing only flurries of the Mavericks’ high powered offense to surface.

Boston two All-Stars Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum scored 22 and 16 points, respectively. Tatum led the Celtics with 11 rebounds. Boston had a narrow 47-43 edge on the boards and an impressive 32-20 advantage on bench scoring, much to the credit of Porzingis’ 20-point effort.

Winning Game 1 in the NBA Finals gives the Celtics a 70% chance of taking the best-of-seven game series which resumes this Sunday on the same TD Garden court.

Game 1 – 2024 NBA Finals

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Preview) – Welcome to Digital Sports Desk’s on-site coverage as the 2024 NBA Finals tipoff tonight with the Dallas Mavericks visiting the Boston Celtics in Game 1 at TD Garden. The Celtics are consensus 6.5-point favorites coming off their sweep of the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals. Meanwhile, the Mavericks seek to steal home-court advantage in their quest for the franchise’s first NBA title since 2011.

TRENDING
The underdog Mavericks have been popular with the public ahead of Game 1, which is understandable considering Dallas has covered the spread in seven of its past eight road games. The Mavericks have been backed by 74 percent of the spread-line money at BetRivers, where they have also drawn 57 percent of the moneyline handle at +200.

Boston has won eight consecutive games against Western Conference opponents, and the Celtics have won the first half in each of their past five meetings against the Mavs.

The Over/Under on the Vegas line was at 215.5 this morning, with the Over heavily supported with 84 percent of the money.

PROP PICKS
–Luka Doncic Over 31.5 Points (-110 at DraftKings): This has been the most popular player point total prop at the books, and Dallas’ superstar averaged 32.4 points in the team’s five-game win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals. That was a significant uptick from averaging 24.7 points in the six-game series win over Oklahoma City in the semis.

–Jaylen Brown Over 20.5 Points (-265 at BettingHero): The book reported 4.7 percent of the total player prop bets ahead of Game 1 have backed the Over on Brown’s point total. Dallas has a superior defense to Indiana’s, but Brown did average 29.8 points in the sweep of the Pacers while scoring at least 24 in each game.

STARS REBORN
Dallas guard Kyrie Irving and Boston big man Kristaps Porzingis find themselves pitted against their former teams, with Irving’s breakup with the Celtics much messier than Porzingis’ departure from the Mavericks.

Irving spent two seasons in Boston (2017-19) and told fans that he planned on re-signing with the Celtics. That didn’t happen, though, and Irving broke for the Brooklyn Nets once the summer rolled around. He has been met with boos when playing in Boston ever since, and his teams have lost the past six games against the Celtics.

But a hostile environment is the last thing Irving is worried about on the NBA’s biggest stage.

“There’s no fear out here, man. It’s basketball,” Irving said. “The fans are going to say what they’re going to say. I appreciate them and their relationship they have to the game. But it’s about the players at the end of the day.”

Dallas moved on from Porzingis at the 2022 trade deadline, shipping him to the Washington Wizards after deciding that he wasn’t the right piece to pair with Doncic.

“I don’t know why it didn’t work out,” Doncic said. “We were still both young. We tried to make it work, but it just didn’t work.”

DROUGHT STRICKEN
Both teams are trying to win a championship for the first time in over a decade. The Mavericks’ last title came in 2011, while Boston hasn’t gone all the way since 2008.

The Celtics had a golden opportunity to secure their 18th title in franchise history just two years ago, but they fell 4-2 to the Golden State Warriors in the Finals. Looking back on it now, Boston star Jayson Tatum thinks there was a silver lining in coming up short.

“It was a lesson to be learned,” Tatum said. “I told myself that if I ever got the opportunity again to make it to the Finals, that (I’d) never take it for granted. Obviously, we’re here now and thankful to be here.

“I’m excited to get ready to play and have fun (Thursday).”

Dallas, on the other hand, will be appearing in the Finals for the first time since its title run 13 years ago. Irving, Markieff Morris and Derrick Jones Jr. are the only Mavericks with experience in this stage of the postseason.

“Some of us for the Mavs have been here, some of us haven’t,” said Dallas coach Jason Kidd, who was the starting point guard on the Mavericks’ 2011 championship team. “We’re going to embrace that and find a way to hopefully win a series.”

INJURY REPORT
Beating the Celtics could get a lot harder depending on the health of Porzingis, who has missed the past 10 games due to a right soleus (calf) strain. Porzingis will be good to go for Game 1, but he’s unsure if he will be operating at 100 percent.

“I did as much as I could to prepare for this moment, but there’s nothing like game minutes and game experience that I’m going to get (Thursday),” Porzingis said. “It will be tough to jump into the Finals like this.”

PREDICTION
The Celtics have been riding a high since their improbable final-minute comeback against Indiana to kick off the conference finals. The 6.5-point line is a big one to swallow, so we’re more focused on Game 1 odds contributing to a slow start and backing the Under at 215.5 points. — Game 1: Celtics 109, Mavericks 104. Celtics in 7 for the NBA Finals.

–Field Level Media

Kyrie Irving “No Fear” As Finals Begin

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – A pair of stars will need no introduction when the Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks meet for Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday night.

Dallas guard Kyrie Irving and Boston big man Kristaps Porzingis find themselves pitted against their former teams, with Irving’s breakup with the Celtics getting much messier than Porzingis’ departure from the Mavericks.

Irving spent two seasons in Boston and told fans that he planned on re-signing with the Celtics following the 2018-19 campaign.

That didn’t happen, though, and Irving broke for the Brooklyn Nets once the summer rolled around. He has been met with boos when playing in Boston ever since while posting an 0-10 record overall in his past 10 games against the Celtics.

But a hostile environment is the last thing Irving is worried about on the NBA’s biggest stage.

“There’s no fear out here, man. It’s basketball,” Irving said. “The fans are going to say what they’re going to say. I appreciate them and their relationship they have to the game. But it’s about the players at the end of the day.”

Dallas moved on from Porzingis at the 2022 trade deadline, shipping him to the Washington Wizards after deciding that he wasn’t the right piece to pair with star guard Luka Doncic.

“I don’t know why it didn’t work out,” Doncic said. “We were still both young. We tried to make it work, but it just didn’t work.”

History aside, both Irving and Porzingis are primarily concerned with helping their current teams lock up a championship for the first time in over a decade. The Mavericks’ last title came in 2011, while Boston hasn’t gone all the way since 2008.

The Celtics had a golden opportunity to secure their 18th title in franchise history just two years ago, but they fell 4-2 to the Golden State Warriors in the Finals. Looking back on it now, Boston star Jayson Tatum thinks there was a silver lining in coming up short.

“It was a lesson to be learned,” Tatum said. “I told myself that if I ever got the opportunity again to make it to the Finals, that (I’d) never take it for granted. Obviously, we’re here now and thankful to be here.

“I’m excited to get ready to play and have fun (Thursday).”

Dallas, on the other hand, will be appearing in the Finals for the first time since its title run 13 years ago. Irving, Markieff Morris and Derrick Jones Jr. are the only Mavericks with experience in this stage of the postseason.

“Some of us for the Mavs have been here, some of us haven’t,” said Dallas coach Jason Kidd, who was the starting point guard on the Mavericks’ 2011 championship team. “We’re going to embrace that and find a way to hopefully win a series.”

Beating the Celtics could get a lot harder depending on the health of Porzingis, who has missed the past 10 games due to a right soleus (calf) strain. Porzingis will be good to go for Game 1, but he’s unsure if he will be operating at 100 percent.

“I did as much as I could to prepare for this moment, but there’s nothing like game minutes and game experience that I’m going to get (Thursday),” Porzingis said. “It will be tough to jump into the Finals like this.”

– Field Level Media

NBA Finals: Coach Joe Preaches

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – With a long wait for the NBA Finals begin, Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla made it known that there is one storyline he will not delve into any further in the days before Game 1, scheduled for this Thursday.

The relationship between Celtics stars Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum has been analyzed for years. Brown is Boston’s former No. 3 overall pick in 2016 out of Cal, and Tatum was selected No. 3 overall from Duke a year later.

The draft pick slots were acquired through a pair of savvy trades by the Celtics’ front office and have restored a winning culture to a legendary franchise, but drama has followed the duo since they were paired together in the NBA.

While talk of the fractured dynamic has slowed somewhat in recent years, Mazzulla was asked about it potentially being a talking point before Game 1 when the Dallas Mavericks visit Boston.

“I’m kind of (considering) how deep I want to get into that because the whole thing about that really (angers me),” Mazzulla said at a news conference Friday. “I think it’s unfair to both of them and I think it’s stupid that people have to use those two guys’ names and use information they don’t know to create click bait so that they can stay relevant.”

The Brown-Tatum duo has never missed the playoffs. In fact, they have led Boston to the Eastern Conference finals in five of the past seven seasons and into the NBA Finals this season and in 2022, when they fell to the Golden State Warriors.

A bruising forward with long-distance shooting range, Tatum has finished at least sixth in NBA MVP voting in each of the past three seasons. Brown, an All-Star in three of the past four seasons, is a scoring guard who has averaged at least 20 points in each of the past five seasons.

“It’s very unfair that those two get compared,” Mazzulla said. “They’re two completely different people, two completely different players. They’re great teammates, they love each other and they go about winning and they go about their process in a different way. So why they have to be lumped together I think is unfair and people just use it for their own (relevance).”

[Read more…] about NBA Finals: Coach Joe Preaches

Well Rested Mavericks Await Celtics

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DALLAS – (Staff and wire Service Report) – It’ll be a well-rested Dallas Mavericks team that takes the floor against the visiting Boston Celtics on Monday night.

Dallas hasn’t played since dropping a 127-110 decision to the Los Angeles Lakers on the road on Wednesday night. The Mavericks were scheduled to play at Golden State on Friday, but that game was postponed following the death of Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojevic.

Boston, meanwhile, will be playing its second game in as many nights. Despite a lackluster second half, the Celtics won 116-107 at Houston on Sunday. The Celtics led 70-55 at halftime but were limited to 46 points in the second half (20 in the third quarter).

Former Maverick Kristaps Porzingis led Boston with 32 points, six rebounds and five blocked shots. Derrick White added 21 points and 11 rebounds, and Jaylen Brown finished with a triple-double (13 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists).

Boston, which boasts the NBA’s best record (33-10), shot 43.9 percent from the field (43 of 98).

“I think that’s the recipe and something that we took from last year is when we’re not shooting well, can we have a different switch attack?” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said after the Houston game. “Which is what Kristaps is able to bring us in the post and how do we fight for extra possessions, which is our offensive rebounding and our crashing. It’s something that we stress this year.”

Guard Jrue Holiday (sprained right elbow) and center Al Horford (rest) didn’t play in Boston’s victory over the Rockets. Horford typically doesn’t play in both games of back-to-backs.

Luka Doncic was back in the Dallas lineup for the loss to the Lakers after he missed three games with a sprained right ankle. Doncic scored 33 points, collected 13 rebounds and had 10 assists.

Doncic shot 12 of 24 from the floor but was just 2 of 9 from 3-point territory. He leads the Mavericks in points (33.6), rebounds (8.3) and assists (9.2) per game.

“First game back was tough with the legs,” Doncic said. “I thought a lot of threes were going in and they didn’t.”

Dallas trailed by two at halftime but was outscored 42-27 in the third quarter. The Mavericks were 11 of 40 on 3-point attempts.

“Some shots didn’t fall,” Dallas center Dereck Lively II said. “There were some times where we came down the court, and we just weren’t moving the ball well. We were just kind of getting up jumpers instead of trying to get into the offense and trying to move the ball around so we could get a better look.”

Most of the misses came from the Mavericks’ top scorers, as Doncic, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Kyrie Irving were a combined 3 of 21 from behind the arc.

“We generated a lot of wide-open looks and they didn’t drop for us,” Dallas coach Jason Kidd said. “They made it a point to have pace and took advantage of the misses. When you miss open shots against a team like that, they are going to make you pay.”

Monday’s game is the first of two meetings this season between the Celtics and Mavericks. The teams will also play in Boston on March 1.

–Field Level Media

Celtics: Grant Williams Signed/Traded

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BOSTON -(Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Dallas Mavericks agreed to a four-year, $53 million deal with restricted free agent Grant Williams as part of a three-team sign-and-trade agreement that includes the Boston Celtics and San Antonio Spurs.

The Spurs will receive forward Reggie Bullock and an unprotected first-round pick swap in 2030 from the Mavericks. The Celtics and Mavericks will each receive two second-round draft choices.

Williams, 24, spent four seasons with the Celtics since being a first-round pick in 2019 out of Tennessee. He averaged 8.1 points and 4.6 rebounds in 79 games (23 starts) last season.

Williams has career averages of 6.2 points and 3.4 rebounds in 288 games (58 starts). He underwent surgery on his left hand last month and is expected to be fine before the start of training camp.

Williams is the second key player Boston has traded this offseason. The team previously dealt guard Marcus Smart, the NBA Defensive Player of the Year for 2021-22, to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Teams officially can’t sign free agents or formally announce trades until Thursday.

Bullock, 32, spent the past two seasons of his 10-year NBA with the Mavericks. He averaged 7.2 points and 3.6 rebounds in 78 games (55 starts) last season.

Bullock made 151 3-pointers last season, second most in his career behind the 163 he made for the New York Knicks in the 2020-21 campaign. He has made 852 career treys in 512 games (294 starts) with six teams.

–Field Level Media