Celtics-Mavericks 2024 NBA Finals Preview, Odds and Predictions originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The 2024 NBA Finals matchup is set: the Boston Celtics and the Dallas Mavericks will face off with the Larry O’Brien Trophy at stake.
The Celtics are in the Finals for the second time in three years after going 12-2 in the Eastern Conference playoffs, including a sweep of the Indiana Pacers in the conference finals. The Mavericks are back in the Finals for the first time since 2011 after beating three 50-win teams in the Western Conference playoffs. Dallas eliminated the Minnesota Timberwolves in the conference finals in five games.
This series has no shortage of compelling stories. The power of the stars is tremendous. Celtics forward Jayson Tatum and Mavs guard Luka Doncic are two of the five best players in basketball and were both recently voted to the All-NBA first team. Boston guard Jaylen Brown is an All-NBA caliber player playing the best basketball of his career. He was the Eastern Conference Finals MVP.
Celtics big man Al Horford is looking for his first championship ring in year 17. Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd is trying to become the 13th person to win a title as both a player and a head coach. He would be the sixth to win as a player and coach on the same team.
Kristaps Porzingis, Celtics center hasn’t played since Game 4 of the first round due to a calf injury. Getting him back into the lineup for the Finals would be a huge boost for the C’s. If Porzingis plays, he should be very motivated to beat his former team.
And of course, Kyrie Irving’s return to Boston will be a big topic of discussion ahead of the series. Irving is an elite scorer with experience winning championships. He also played for the Celtics for two seasons in 2017-18 and 2018-19. He left the team as a free agent in 2019 despite telling fans at an event before the 2017-18 campaign that he planned to re-sign. Irving too stomped on the iconic Celtics logo at center court as a player for the Brooklyn Nets in the 2021 playoffs. Although it has been five years since Irving left Boston, he will likely still be the number one villain for Celtics fans in this series.
Will the Celtics surpass the Lakers and win a league-record 18th championship, or will the Mavericks pull off another upset and claim the franchise’s second title in 14 seasons?
Here’s a full preview of the Celtics-Mavericks matchup.
Series schedule
The NBA Finals begin Thursday, June 6 at TD Garden in Boston. The Celtics have home field advantage, something they didn’t have in their last two Finals appearances in 2010 and 2022.
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