Mavs vs. Celtics: The Difference-Makers for the 2024 NBA Finals
Mavs vs. Celtics: The Difference-Makers for the 2024 NBA Finals
June 3, 2024
The 2024 NBA Finals are now set. Starting
Thursday, we will get to see the heavily-fancied Boston Celtics take on
the surprise package of the Dallas Mavericks in an intriguing series.
It’s a clash of styles and personalities, and it also features a number
of interesting sub-plots.
But who will be the difference-makers in the series? What should we be
looking out for? Below, we ask some key questions and look at some
important narratives of the 2024 NBA Finals.
The Celtics Deserve the Favorites Tag
Right now, sportsbooks have placed Boston as the clear favorite in the NBA Finals odds,
with the Celtics priced around -225 to take an 18th Championship. Those
odds suggest it’s far from certain, of course, and Dallas will have
plenty of backers at +185. But the Celtics – as they have been all
season – are being backed to succeed.
It’s hard to argue with that assessment. The Celtics started the season
as favorites, remained favorites all the way through the season, and
then breezed through the Playoffs. You have to go all the way back to
1996 to find a team not seeded 1, 2, or 3 that went on to win the NBA
Championship (the Houston Rockets did it as 6th seed). This is not
encouraging for the Mavericks (5th seeds).
The Mavs Are a Team in Form
Despite the above, there are plenty of reasons for
Dallas fans to be confident. The Mavericks’ preseason odds of +2500
meant that they were not even considered among the top ten chances by
sportsbooks, and their early season seemed to confirm that. Yet, the
team went on a rip in the spring, finishing with 16 wins in their last
20 regular season games.
They have been fairly excellent throughout the Playoffs, too. The Mavs
are the very definition of a team that has grown into the season, and
the main question is whether they can continue that evolution. We
should not discount it continuing.
The Big 4 Focus
Both sides are laden with talent, but you can’t
argue with the fact that the focus will be on four key players: The
Celtics’ Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown and the Mavs’ Luka Doncic and
Kyrie Irving. Tatum is having his best season in green colors, whereas
Doncic was runner-up in the Regular Season MVP awards (behind Nikola
Jokic). Tatum is the betting favorite to be Finals MVP. Brown, too, has
been excellent, and he arguably eclipsed Tatum in the latter stages of
the Playoffs.
It's hard to ignore Kyrie Irving,
of course. The former Celtics player has an uneasy relationship with
the Boston faithful, and you get the sense that he would hugely enjoy
upsetting them over the next few weeks. You can’t take your eyes off
him. Bot beyond the Big 4, other factors could come into play,
including Boston’s defensive prowess.
The First 2 Games Are Crucial
The Celtics’ home record of 37-4 in the regular season is not quite the best in history – the 1985-1986 Celtics and 2015-16
Spurs went 40-1 – but it is nonetheless a formidable statistic. They
actually went 22-0 at home until finally losing a game to the Clippers
in January. The first two games at TD Gardens will, therefore, be
crucial. If Boston can make that home advantage count and go 2-0 up, it
feels like a long way back for Dallas. If the Mavs’ can get anything
from Boston, then you would feel that the pendulum could swing in their
favor.
The Pressure Is On Boston
As we said, Dallas has grown into the season.
Conversely, the Celtics have been favorites before a game was played in
the regular season. You can argue that the Boston players have dealt
with the weight of expectation admirably, yet the onus will be on them
to deliver. Pressure can do funny things to players (and coaches). It’s
not as if Dallas fans will consider this a free shot, but the
expectation is that Boston must deliver. That may just give the likable
Mavericks an edge.
