Following the Boston Celtics’ 106-99 Game 3 win over the Dallas Mavericks to take a commanding 3-0 series lead in the NBA Finals, the Celtics media thought they would have a little fun with Mavericks star Luka Doncic.
NBA fans and analysts alike were well-aware of Doncic’s foul-baiting antics and incessant complaints throughout the game, and one Celtics media member decided enough was enough.
Doncic finished with 27 points on 11-of-27 shooting, but he fouled out with roughly four minutes left in the fourth quarter. NBC Sports Boston took the latter of those statistics and turned it into a savage graphic on X (formerly known as Twitter) paired with a screenshot of Doncic at the postgame presser.
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) June 13, 2024
Doncic appeared to tut at the officiating after the game, as his fifth and sixth fouls were arguably very close calls. One game away from suffering a Finals sweep, the Mavericks will host the Celtics for Game 4 on Friday night.
Payton Pritchard and the Boston Celtics are currently awaiting the end of the Orlando Magic - Cleveland Cavaliers series to learn their opponent for the upcoming Eastern Conference semifinal series.
While everyone waits for the unofficial NBA TV series to wrap up on national television sometime this weekend, the local press gets to ask whatever questions they don't have time for when there are actual games to talk about, which is probably why someone finally asked Pritchard about his sneakers.
Prtichard wears Sabrina Ionescu's signature Nike shoes. Pritchard and Ionescu both went to Oregon as freshmen in 2016 and played all four years in Eugene before turning pro.
Ionescu was selected with the first pick of the 2020 WNBA draft, while Pritchard was taken 26th by the Celtics. While Pritchard doesn't have his own signature shoe, at least he found a comfortable one with his friend's name on it.
Payton Pritchard on why he wears Sabrina Ionescu’s shoes:
“Me and Sabrina are in the same class, and we went to Oregon together as freshmen. Her shoes are probably the most comfortable out right now. It’s light. I like it.” pic.twitter.com/rbROb4F1MU
Pritchard is not the only NBA player rocking the Sabrina's. During All-Star Weekend, Dallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively II revealed that he had an exciting exchange with Ionescu about her shoes. She thanked him for wearing them while he thanked her for making them so comfortable.
"Thank you for wearing my shoes." "Thank you for making them that comfortable."
That's some solid word-of-mouth. Not only does Ionescu have the skill and profile to be featured during NBA All-Star Saturday, but she also has got the footwear to back it up.
And if she has it her way, more WNBA players will get signature shoes. If they're half as comfortable as hers apparently are, that's a good thing for all basketball players.
Halftime shows are like commercials. A necessary evil and a perfect opportunity to load up on more snack mix or perform a fluids check. Few people in the history of sitting on their couches have ever been deeply intrigued by a Coming Up At the Half tease. And the hardworking broadcasting crews that try to capture eyeballs and attention are fighting an uphill battle.
That's the bad news. The good is that all of this combines to create a low-stakes environment because, let's face it, average viewers don't really care if the halftime show is good or average or a trainwreck. As long as the second half begins on time then everyone wins and no one loses.
So it's kind of perplexing to see the aggregating of grievances concerning ESPN/ABC's mid-game fare during the NBA Finals. Awful Announcing got out the stopwatch and crunched some numbers following Game 1's halftime show.
All told, the studio crew got roughly a minute and 20 seconds of air time. And remember, that time was split between five people. Much of that time was spent on intros from and outros to commercial breaks.
Is this ideal? Certainly not. But is it a new phenomenon? Also no.
ESPN/ABC has been dinged for stuffing shot-clock-length opinions and observations between a crushing amount of bells and whistles for years. Those critiquing the operation are right when they say there's no flow and it can all be a bit disorienting. But they are also a bit silly for tuning into the Finals games and expecting anything different than what has been standard operating procedure for some time now.
It feels weird to defend something that could certainly be better yet at the same time complaining that viewers aren't getting enough opinions or analysis during what is essentially a content oasis feels a bit weird. Those are available on the network before the game and after the game, plus on-demand and on social media for anyone who may have missed the thousands of words and hundreds of segments devoted to Celtics-Mavs under the ESPN umbrella.
There simply cannot be a real world faction significant enough to warrant concern-trolling that Bob Myers and Josh Hart weren't given enough time to explore the space. Or that the real world is pining for another minute of Stephen A. Smith to fire off whatever he's going to fire off.
For as often this crew is compared to TNT's iconic foursome on Inside the NBA, which does move at a more beneficial pace, there's little apples-to-oranges consideration. First, broadcasting a champioship is going to afford the opportunity — and necessity really — to be more sponsor- and commercial-heavy. Then there's the problem of people conflating TNT's long postgame coverage with its halftime hits. Sure Barkley or O'Neal might say something hilarious and go viral during the mid-game break but more often than not the focus will be on Team X not turning the ball over or how Team Y looks sleepy out there.
Sunday night's Game 2 brought more of the same because, honestly, who would think it would change in the span of a few days. Unofficial numbers suggest the commercialization outpaced the analysis at around a 6-1 clip. But we're not going to go back and chart it ourselves because almost anything is a better use of time.
Something to keep in mind for Game 3 instead of hoping for a miracle that simply isn't going to come.
It took just one game -- one quarter really -- of the 2024 NBA Finals for the Boston Celtics to show why they had the best record in the NBA in the 2023-24 season and led the league in net rating.
Boston jumped out to the biggest first quarter lead in a Game 1 in NBA Finals history, and it didn't let Dallas get closer than eight points the rest of the way in a blowout win.
The C's came into this series as -210 favorites at DraftKings Sportsbook, giving them an implied probability of over 60 percent to win the title. That has already changed drastically after Boston's Game 1 win.
Based on the latest odds at DraftKings, Boston has an implied probability of 80 percent to win the NBA Finals this season. While it was only one game, it's clear that Boston's dominance has altered the betting market in a big way.
A historical trend that dates back to the 1996-97 season also favors Boston, as no team that has finished outside the top eight in net rating during the regular season has gone on to win the NBA Finals since then.
Dallas is attempting to break that trend this season.
Since the 1996-97 season, every team that won the NBA Finals finished inside the top 8 in net rating during the regular season.
For bettors that still believe in the Mavericks, there is something to hang your hat on after Game 1.
Jason Kidd was just 1-5 (now 1-6) in Game 1s as the Mavericks' head coach, but he's led his team to a 5-1 series record so far in two playoff runs. Kidd has made the adjustments -- and his team has responded -- after other poor showings in series openers in the playoffs this season.
As a bettor who already has a Celtics future from the preseason in pocket, I'm standing pat ahead of Sunday's Game 2 based on the latest odds movement.
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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