All of the Boston Celtics’ prior disappointments were detonated in this series. They weren’t flawless, but they were exceedingly dominant with their core and system. Both were on full display in Game 1 and again in Game 5 as they beat the Dallas Mavericks 106-88 to win the 2024 NBA Finals.
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are not quite superduperstars and not quite the archetype of players that win championships in this league historically, but they’re double stars at the NBA’s most valuable position type as two-way wings. There are a number of different ways to build around them and the Celtics have done so brilliantly with Derrick White and Jrue Holiday in the backcourt and Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis at center. The Celtics have found perfect complements for Tatum and Brown and their system of five-out spacing, continuous ball movement and man movement, and versatile defense that doesn’t allow anything easy with no weak links to attack. Boston was the best team throughout the regular season and their performance across this series leaves no doubt of their greatness. They accentuate the greatness of their double stars.
In Game 5, Tatum and Brown were slow to get started offensively, but Jrue Holiday made a couple runners in the lane to get their offense going. Later in the first quarter, Holiday had a drive and dish to Brown cutting for a dunk, and then set up Sam Hauser for a three-pointer on a dribble handoff. The Celtics closed out the quarter with a 9-0 run to take back some of the points they had given away as the Mavericks attacked Kristaps Porzingis from three multiple times upon his return from injury.
Tatum finally got going in this series in the second quarter by repeatedly driving to the basket, finishing those with buckets and fouls drawn. The Celtics extended their lead in the second quarter to 46-31 until Joe Mazzulla went small taking out Horford for Brown. Without a rim protector, the Mavericks successfully scored at the basket on four straight possessions to cut the lead to nine. Mazzulla called a quick timeout to get Horford back into the game and the Celtics closed out the half on a 19-7 run capped by a halfcourt shot at the buzzer from Payton Pritchard.
Tatum’s first half ended with nine assists and a stepback three-pointer over Luka Doncic.
The scoring slowed down in the second half and the Mavericks were never able to sustain a run of three-pointers, but they managed to stay within striking distance to keep it interesting. Brown drove and dished to Porzingis three minutes into the fourth quarter for an emphatic dunk to go up 21, which were also the first points of the quarter that felt like the final door shutting on Dallas.
Tatum explored the space over the next few possessions as the Celtics shifted into pre-celebration mode. Tatum assisted on a White three-pointer before he scored on an and-1 and a jumper on the next one.
Mazzulla substituted out Horford first before taking Tatum and Brown out together with 1:21 remaining. Mazzulla did the same with the next dead ball for Holiday and White.
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Many of the great cities in Europe are built directly upon the stone and amongst the walls of its ancient settlements. There are extensive ruins still buried beneath parts of London and Rome with the present day constructions literally resting on top of the past like a layer cake.
The Celtics forged the core of this championship team in a similar way. They have accomplished the unprecedented feat of winning a championship with a pair of stars acquired out of trades involving stars from its most recent prior championship 16 years ago in 2008. Great teams usually burn out all at once due to old age, or break apart a little at a time, but Danny Ainge made an unusual trade in 2013 with the Brooklyn Nets, sending Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce for flotsam salaries and the picks that became Brown and Tatum. Another general manager would have passed on the opportunity out of loyalty and sentimentality, just as the Celtics did at the end of the 1980s run. After living through that as a player, Ainge connected a title won on June 17, 2008 with one won on June 17, 2024.
The Celtics steered themselves away from breaking apart Tatum and Brown when they were young and unproven. At various times before then, the Celtics offered up the picks that became those players for other stars. The grand plan of pairing Kyrie Irving with Anthony Davis never came to pass, and this alternate path finally paid off after this core had won 52 playoff games between 2018 and 2023 heading into the playoffs. Only Jerry West between 1961 and 1971 won more playoff games (60) before winning a title. The playoffs were far shorter in that era and West’s Lakers reached the Finals seven times and lost before winning in 1972.
The temperament of this team is admirably normal and grounded. There is a togetherness and a selflessness that appears genuine. Any complications between their stars were outside projections than the reality of the partnership. Now that they have won a title, I doubt they will prematurely break themselves apart the way the Shaq/Kobe Lakers did, or take on the restlessness of a Kevin Durant with the Warriors. The more restrictive second apron environment could help undermine some of their rivals more than it hurts their own sustainability. The consequences of that environment are yet to be seen, especially with the cap rising 10 percent per season starting in 25-26. The Celtics will win what they win and lose what they lose.