The Boston Celtics are up 3–0 on the Dallas Mavericks in the 2024 NBA Finals, and could win a championship on Friday night in Game 4.
Forward Jayson Tatum is ready to add a championship to his resume, but not just for himself. He wants to win the title for all of his teammates, too. So, he isn't really focused on the additional accolades winning the finals can bring, like being named the NBA Finals MVP.
"Finals MVP or whatever, a champion is a champion. That's the goal," Tatum told Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes. "I want for my teammates what I want for myself. I want everybody to shine. There's enough attention for all of us. And so, I want everybody to give us theirs."
Tatum added that because the Celtics recently lost in the NBA Finals, back in 2022 to the Golden State Warriors, he wants to win this title to prove the doubters wrong. Critics will emphasize that while Tatum has earned some of the top achievements in the NBA, he still doesn't have a championship.
"Because I've been here before, and I know what it felt like to lose [in the Finals] and that was the worst feeling ever," Tatum said. "That was the worst summer I ever had. I made the All-Star team five times. I'm All-NBA first team year after year. The only thing they said I haven't done is win. ... I just vowed to myself that if I ever got back to the Finals, then I would literally do whatever I needed to do to ensure that we have a different outcome."
If the Celtics win the franchise's 18th title on Friday, the organization will lead NBA history for the most titles as the Los Angeles Lakers have 17. The Celtics last won in 2008.
After it was reported Porzingis was dealing with a "torn medial retinaculum," the Latvian big man was ruled out for Game 3 shortly before tip-off. The Celtics leaned on Al Horford, as they had for the many games Porzingis missed earlier in the postseason, and turned to Xavier Tillman Sr. for backup duty and he delivered. Boston ultimately prevailed in Game 3, 106-99, to take a nigh-insurmountable 3-0 lead in the Finals.
The Celtics will look to finish off the sweep in Friday's Game 4 and early reporting suggests Porzingis could be healthy enough to help. On Thursday, The Athletic's Shams Charania said Porzingis "has a chance" to suit up for Game 4.
After Wednesday night's victory the Celtics are 10-1 without Porzingis this postseason. They have shown time and time again that they can win without their starting center. But Boston's Game 1 win over Dallas showed how impactful Porzingis can be when he's healthy and cooking. The Celtics won that contest by 18, the only game they've won by double-digits so far.
Wins are wins but Porzingis's presence provides a fairly large buffer for Boston. He averaged 20.1 points and 1.8 blocks per game during the regular season. That production can be compensated for by the extremely strong roster the Celtics boast but there's a trickle-down effect with Porzingis out there and healthy that makes everyone else's lives much easier.
When Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said last week that Jaylen Brown was the Boston Celtics’ “best player,” it was widely believed that Kidd was playing mind games (an allegation Kidd denied) rather than expressing an earnest opinion about Boston’s hierarchy. But he may have been right.
Kidd’s initial assertion seemed outlandish because Jayson Tatum undoubtedly has a better résumé than Brown. (Tatum was named First-Team All-NBA in each of the past three seasons, while Brown has just one Second-Team selection to his name.) Brown is a star, but Tatum is a superstar. In the Finals, though, it’s Brown who has shone brightest.
Tatum struggled offensively in the first two games of the series, averaging 17 points per game on 31.6% shooting (although he contributed in other ways). And while Tatum was better in Game 3 (31 points on 11-of-26 shooting), he was quiet again in the fourth quarter as the Mavs mounted a ferocious comeback, making just one of his five field-goal attempts.
That’s when Brown stepped up.
The fourth quarter very nearly turned into a nightmare for the Celtics. Boston was able to stretch its lead to 21 points in the opening minutes but saw that lead evaporate as the Mavs reeled off a 22–2 run to cut the deficit to one. The only Boston basket scored during Dallas’s run—which lasted more than seven minutes—was by Brown. He played a huge role in helping stop the skid, scoring on a putback layup with 3:08 to play that made it 95–92 in favor of the Celtics and hitting a contested jumper with 1:01 to play that made it 102–98. He scored nine of Boston’s 21 points in the final quarter as the Celtics held on to win, 106–99.
“I mean, how can I explain Jaylen?” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “The guy just has a growth mindset. He just wants to get better. He yearns to get better. He’s not afraid to face his weaknesses on the court. So when you have that type of mindset, you’re just going to be able to take on every situation that the game brings you. He puts himself in every single situation that he sees in a game. He uses six, seven, eight coaches a day, and every situation on both ends of the floor, he puts himself in that.
“And that’s how you have to grow, is to become vulnerable and on the things that make you uncomfortable, and he does that.”
Brown’s biggest play of the night, though, may have been the foul he drew on Luka Doncic with 4:12 to play. Brown attacked Doncic in transition and gave Doncic no choice but to commit a foul, causing him to foul out. Doncic’s absence changed the entire shape of the game. Once Doncic was forced to leave the floor, Dallas’s comeback came to a screeching halt. Kyrie Irving did his best to carry the Mavs, but Doncic’s absence allowed Boston's defense to zero in on Irving.
Doncic’s poor performance was the other main takeaway from Game 3. He scored 27 points, but his uninspired defense left him vulnerable to foul calls, eventually leading to his disqualification from the game. His constant complaints to the referees probably didn’t help flip any borderline calls in his favor, either.
Doncic has never been a great defender but that’s been especially problematic against a Boston team whose scoring depth makes hiding Doncic on defense impossible. And he’s clearly struggling with injuries that hinder his mobility, making him even more of a defensive liability. Doncic certainly looks like he could use a rest, and now that the Mavs have fallen behind 3–0 in the series, it appears he’ll be getting one very soon.
McIlroy is looking for his first major victory in a decade. / Adam Cairns-USA TODAY Sports
… things I saw last night:
5. The couple that got married in the stands during a Giants game. 4. Giancarlo Stanton’s 449-foot shot for his 17th home run of the season. Stanton, Juan Soto (17) and Aaron Judge (25) have combined for 59 homers this season, which is more than five teams have on the year. 3. Christian Pulisic’s free-kick goal vs. Brazil. 2. Angel Reese’s big game against the league-leading Sun. She had a career-high 20 points and 10 rebounds as she notched her fourth straight double double. 1. Jaylen Brown’s ferocious dunk at the end of the third quarter.
In sports, narratives born from what happens on the field of play constantly shape the conversation for fans. Over the last decade, more and more media personalities have driven those narratives through the art of the take– planting a flag on the boldest argument conceivable and defending it until their last breath. It matters not if the take starts out “hot” and ends up “cold.” What matters is the take was given. A conversation, launched. A narrative, driven. Engagement, plentiful.
We welcome you, then, to TAKE MARKET. Our endeavor is to look back upon the strongest takes in the media ecosystem from the most recent news cycle and evaluate their stock. Should you buy low on a Stephen A. Smith take that’s on the verge of coming to fruition? Should you sell high on a Skip Bayless take that looks good now but has a nosedive rapidly approaching? We will provide those answers, fully informing you of where the most prevalent narratives in sports today are coming from and where they are going.
In the first edition of TAKE MARKET, we look back at the discourse surrounding the 2024 NBA Finals.
"Well, Jaylen [Brown] is their best player.. He plays both both sides at a high rate.”
This take comes from an unexpected source; head coaches usually stay out of the narrative game unless they're defending their own players. But Kidd, ahead of Game 2 of the Finals, threw out his own hot take by proclaiming Jaylen Brown, not Jayson Tatum, to be the best player on the Boston Celtics. It is a familiar debate for Celtics fans. It may be a newer one for the national audience after Brown flopped in Game 7 of the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals following Tatum's sprained ankle, seemingly putting the conversation to rest once and for all.
But Brown elevated his game to such an extent in this postseason that it is, indeed, a conversation once more.
Through 17 games this postseason, Brown is averaging 24.9 points and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 54.3% from the floor; after his 30-point Game 3 outing, the All-Star has shot above 50% from the floor in each of the last seven games played. Tatum, meanwhile, has struggled mightily to score efficiently in the playoffs. He's performed at an elite level in every other aspect of the game but his shooting troubles have cracked the door open for Brown's candidacy as the team's top talent.
These trends continued in the first three games of the NBA Finals. Brown has scored efficiently while making Luka Doncic's life visibly miserable. Tatum has done everything well ... except score. The Celtics wouldn't be up 3-0 without their combined production, but in regards to the "who is better" debate, Brown's case has grown stronger by the game.
Most dismissed Kidd's initial comments out of hand, assuming it was more a ploy to stir up drama rather than an honest evaluation of Boston's two stars. Now, though, the stock is going up. If you didn't buy the dip last year, it isn't too late to get in on the action.
Recommendation: BUY
Stan Van Gundy: "Minnesota's top rated defense is gonna be challenged trying to slow them down arguably the best offensive backcourt in the history of the NBA in Luka Doncic & Kyrie Irving."
During the 2024 Western Conference Finals, TNT announcer Stan Van Gundy sparked debate around the media sphere by labeling Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving as "arguably" the greatest offensive backcourt duo of all time. Given the incredibly rich history of scoring talent at the guard position in the NBA, it was quite the proclamation, even if SVG hedged by slipping an "arguably" in there.
The two did all they could to prove Van Gundy right against the Minnesota Timberwolves. In the Mavs' six-game defeat of the Wolves, Doncic and Irving combined to average 54.5 points and 12.6 assists per game on 48 percent shooting from the floor. In Game 6 they both put up 36 points to eliminate Minnesota and reach the Finals.
The stock of this take fell off a cliff once the Finals started and not even a "vintage" Kyrie performance in Game 3, as Jaylen Brown described it, can salvage it. Doncic has put up his usual numbers over the first three games of the Finals but hasn't been nearly as dominant. Irving reminded everybody why this was even a conversation with an excellent outing on Wednesday night, scoring 35 tough points on 13-of-28 shooting, but mustered up only 28 points combined in Boston to open the series.
This is a position you should move off sooner rather than later.
One of the strongest narratives heading into the Finals this year was the Celtics' easy path through the Eastern Conference playoffs, as laid out above by Nick Wright of Fox Sports.
All three of Boston's opponents in the conference bracket were missing their best players for most or all of their matchups. The Celtics took care of business by losing only two games, and were commended for it. But true adversity was in short supply— especially compared to the Mavericks, who beat two of the top three seeds in the West for their spot in the Finals. It made for popular reasoning to pick the Mavericks to beat the Celtics, as Wright did.
Then Boston came out of the gates swinging, and swinging hard. They went up by 29 points over the Mavericks during Game 1 before coasting to an 18-point win. In Game 2, the Celtics had one of their worst performances from deep of the whole season, hitting only 10 of 39 three-point tries ... and still won by seven. The Mavs were on the ropes in Game 3, falling down by 21 in the fourth quarter, before ripping off a roaring comeback that cut Boston's lead to two. But the Celtics pulled out another clutch win and now have a 3-0 lead.
Their stars are more rested than the Mavs' leading men. The way Boston closed out Game 2 and Game 3 shows they didn't need to battle with other stars along the way to know how to win when it counts. Whatever other problems arise with the Celtics over the life of the Finals, any stock in the idea that their easy path was actually a bad thing is plummeting.
Recommendation: SELL
There were many questions about Kristaps Porzingis' ability to step in and compete in the Finals after he missed 10 straight playoff games with a calf strain. The Latvian big man did not play a second of the Celtics' second or third round series. It was legitimate to wonder if he would be capable of regaining his 20 point-per-game form from the regular season with basically zero runway.
It was also legitimate to wonder if the Celtics could beat a fully healthy, star-studded opponent without Porzingis. The sweet-shooting center is what unlocks Boston's highest potential. There are very few players in the NBA who can shoot and make 30-foot jumpers with regularity while protecting the rim at a truly elite level. The Celtics had enough talent to breeze through the East without him, but the Mavs were a different sort of beast. Some of the top analysts in basketball, like ESPN's Zach Lowe, planted flags on the idea that Boston would struggle to win against such talent without Porzingis.
After two games of the Finals, it's clear Lowe wasn't off-base at all in terms of how good the Celtics are with Porzingis. Porzingis got Boston off to a hot start in Game 1 and his 18 first-half points gave his team a lead they'd never relinquish. He was less impactful in Game 2 but his mere presence in the rotation means Boston always has five good three-point shooters on the floor at any given moment, no matter what.
Then Porzingis suffered another injury and was ruled out of Game 3. The Celtics got their doors blown off in the opening minutes before settling in and ultimately pulling it out. They are now up 3-0 in the Finals and historical trends suggest they will win the championship pretty much no matter what. Porzingis is a tremendous player who makes Boston truly great, but we cannot say at this point the team needs him to earn Banner 18.
Recommendation: SELL
As media members staked their claim on one side or the other of the Celtics-Mavs debate, it became clear that just about everybody was earnestly excited for this matchup. It's rife with legacy talk and star power, featuring new blood in a way the NBA rarely experiences. On the strategic side of things the matchup features a fascinating clash of styles and the potential for quite the chess match between C's head coach Joe Mazzulla and Mavs' head coach Jason Kidd.
More than anything, there was reason to be hyped because both teams boast incredible shot-making prowess. Thus, the audience received segments like the above from Stephen A. Smith, wondering if the combination of new storylines and talent would be enough to rank this Finals matchup the best of the last 10 years.
The stock here started falling from the outset. Slowly, instead of off a cliff. But falling nonetheless. Game 1 was not very competitive, and Game 2 only marginally more so. Doncic, arguably the marquee star of the series, is clearly hindered by a variety of injuries and his running mate Irving is struggling to create his usual magic. The Celtics have beaten the Mavericks in a "death by a thousand cuts" situation, which is not nearly as enticing to watch as true greatness.
The Mavericks looked like they were going to make a series out of it in Game 3 but lost composure down the stretch with Doncic fouling out, which is not quality viewing for anybody. Now Dallas is down 3-0, a deficit nobody in NBA history has ever come back from, and all of the tension of the matchup is gone.
If you were only evaluating this stock, you'd think there was a bear market the way it's going down the drain. All hope technically is not lost; if the Mavs forced a Game 7 then this take would soar. But betting on that sort of longshot is unwise.
The Los Angeles Lakers are set to interview ESPN NBA analyst JJ Redick for the franchise's head coaching job this weekend. A strong performance is expected to propel Redick to the forefront of the head coaching search, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The report from Wojnarowski confirms reporting from media rival Shams Charania of The Athletic, who has been insistent all along that Redick was high on the team's list of candidates for the open role. The Lakers appear to have pivoted back to Redick after swinging and missing on UConn coach Dan Hurley earlier this week.
Redick spoke with Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka last month at the Chicago draft combine, according to Wojnarowski. This additional interview this weekend will dive deeper into what the role will entail should Redick ultimately land the job.
Redick has never coached high level basketball, but had a productive 15-year NBA career and has since turned into a successful podcaster, hosting two shows about the NBA, one of which is with Lakers star LeBron James. Additionally, Redick has settled into his role alongside Doris Burke and Mike Breen on ESPN's top announcing team for its NBA media package.
Redick interviewed for the Charlotte Hornets job that ultimately went to Boston Celtics assistant Charles Lee, and has made it clear that he wants to coach. The opportunity to potentially coach James, as well as veteran Anthony Davis, will certainly be appealing for a first role as a head coach.
The Boston Celtics beat the Dallas Mavericks 106-99 on Wednesday at American Airlines Center to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the NBA Finals. The Mavericks made a furious comeback in the fourth quarter, but fell short after star Luka Doncic fouled out on a couple questionable calls that he really did not agree with.
The home crowd was understandably dead as the Celtics pulled away in the third quarter, which is when the Mavericks X account tweeted one of the saddest things you'll ever see. The X equivalent of "please clap."
This near the end of the third as the Celtics lead ballooned and Jaylen Brown prepared to put a stamp on a 35-19 quarter with a thunderous dunk that took them to the fourth with a 15-point lead. Meanwhile, back on the Internet, the team's post was getting roasted.
The funny thing is, it must have worked. During the break between quarters and the Celtics extending their lead to 21 fans must have had time to check their phones and get the message. What else could explain the team's 22-2 run?
Sure, they ultimately came up short, but what a social media effort. If there's ever been a case for posting through it, this is it.
Dallas fell behind by 21 points in the fourth quarter and then had their furious comeback fall short thanks mostly to the fact that Luka Doncic fouled out with just over four minutes left in the game and couldn't help his team in the final stretch.
ESPN's Brian Windhorst was asked after the game by Scott Van Pelt about what he thought of Doncic's sixth foul and he did not hold back, blasting the guard for that play and crushing him for the way he's acted and played all series long.
"I thought it was perfect that Luka fell on on to the ground there in an unacceptable position to put himself in with four minutes left and five fouls and then immediately looks at the bench and says you better bleeping challenge it, as if its the bench’s fault that he just made a terrible play," Windhorst said.
His rant then got even more personal:
"I’m standing here in the Mavericks tunnel. Over there is the Celtics tunnel. That’s where the winners are. If Luka is ever going to be a winner coming out of this tunnel here he’s going to have to use what happened in this Finals as a learning experience. His defensive performance is unacceptable. He’s a hole on the court. The Celtics are attacking him. They are ahead in this series because they’ve attacked him defensively. And you’ve got a situation here where Luka is complaining about the officiating. They have begged him, they have talked with him, they have pleaded with him—he’s costing his team because of how he treats the officials. He’s a brilliant player, he does so many things well. They are here because of how he did. His performance in this game is unacceptable and the reason why the Mavericks are not going to win. He’s got to get over this. The fact that he came out after the game and blamed the officials showed me he’s nowhere close yet. So maybe over the summer someone will get to him because nobody with the Mavericks or anybody in his life has and that’s why the Mavericks are at this point. They’re never going to this tunnel with the trophy if he doesn’t improve" those aspects of his game."
Here's the video of that:
Brian Windhorst BLASTS Luka Dončić on 'SportsCenter with SVP' after Game 3 of the NBA Finals. 🏀🔥🔥🔥
Game 4 is Friday in Dallas. We'll see if Doncic and the Mavs can bounce back or if the Cetlics can close out their 18th championship in convincing fashion.
Luka Doncic fouled out in the fourth quarter of Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday night as the Boston Celtics defeated his Dallas Mavericks 106-99 at American Airlines Center.
Doncic finished with 27 points on 27 shots before he headed to the bench to watch his team's comeback fall short. His fifth and six fouls came in the fourth quarter on close calls that no Mavericks fan would ever agree with.
After the game. Doncic was asked about the whistles that went against him in the fourth. His response likely doesn't warrant a fine from the league, but reading between the lines, it doesn't seem like he agreed with the calls.
"I mean, I don't know," Doncic said. "We couldn't play physical so ... I don't know. I don't want to say nothing, but you know, six fouls in the NBA Finals? When I'm basically I'm like this. C'mon, man. [Be] better than that."
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) June 13, 2024
While Mavs fans will certainly disagree with the calls that went against Doncic, everyone can agree that the officials were pretty bad in the fourth quarter. It seemed like everything was allowed early in the game, but by the end the only time officials didn't blow the whistle was when Derrick White grabbed Tim Hardaway Jr. right in front of a referee on purpose and pointed at the referee to confirm he was trying to foul and there was no call.
You can’t tell me changes don’t need to be made to officiating. Derrick white clearly intentionally fouled Hardaway looked at the ref, says foul, ref still doesn’t make the call. Refs have been horrible throughout all of the season but this is just embarrassing. pic.twitter.com/DdeKq8GCWd
The Boston Celtics won a roller-coaster of a game Wednesday night to take a 3–0 series lead over the Dallas Mavericks in the 2024 NBA Finals. Jaylen Brown scored 30 points on 22 shots to go along with eight rebounds and eight assists, while Jayson Tatum scored 31 on 26 shots with six rebounds and five assists.
The Celtics dominated the third quarter with great ball movement, which Tatum pointed out on the bench during a timeout. Luckily, ESPN and ABC had the cameras rolling to hear the Celtics star tell everyone they shouldn't settle for step-back three-pointers, which is basically his favorite thing in the world.
“Don’t settle for the step back 3 unless it’s late in the shot clock, that goes for all of us, including myself.”
— Andrew Jerell Jones, Luke 1:37 (IG:twdbk3) (@sluggahjells) June 13, 2024
"We can get shots," Tatum said, "but we can get better shots. Don't settle for the step-back three unless it's late shot clock. That goes for all of us. Myself. Every time we drive we get a wide open three."
He was right. About the drive and kick, at least. He was certainly not right about taking his own advice as he repeatedly took three-pointers in isolation, which Doris Burke pointed out on the broadcast saying that if she were a teammate she would have given him the side-eye when he said that.
Tatum finished the game 4-of-13 from behind the arc. He is now 8-of-27 from three during the Finals.
The Boston Celtics are one win away from hanging their 18th banner inside TD Garden.
In a wild Game 3 filled with scoring runs, big games from the stars of both teams and a surprise fouling out of Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic, the Celtics prevailed 106–99 to take a commanding 3–0 series lead in the 2024 NBA Finals.
Entering the game in a 2–0 series deficit, Dallas came out desperate and had its collective foot on the gas early in the ball game. Behind a hot start from Doncic and Kyrie Irving, the Mavericks took a double-digit lead, 22–9, with 5:48 to go in the first quarter.
But just as the Celtics have done all series long—and all season long—they met the Mavericks' initial run with one of their own. Despite struggling to score in the first two games of the series, Boston star Jayson Tatum came to play on Wednesday night, as all superstars do, in the absence of center Kristaps Porzingis. He led the charge as Boston punched back. The Celtics closed the quarter down 31–30, and entered halftime down 51–50 despite an offensive barrage of Doncic and Irving, who paced the Mavericks with first-half scoring.
But the second half is where the fun began.
The Celtics have been a poor third-quarter team all season long, but Jaylen Brown came out on fire after halftime, hitting jump shot after jump shot, overcoming a slow shooting start that saw him score just six first-half points. Brown scored 24 second half points, and put on a show in the third quarter in particular, where he concluded the frame with an emphatic slam.
Boston's 35–19 third quarter spurt, to go along with a strong start to the fourth quarter, saw its lead balloon to as many as 21 points.
The Mavericks were on life support, but they weren't done yet. A 20–2 spurt that left the Celtics' players absolutely stunned cut the 21-point lead all the way down to three.
However, with 4:12 to go and the Celtics clinging to a 93–90 lead, Brown crossed half-court and drove to the basket with Doncic riding his hip. The Mavericks star, who already had five fouls, stepped in front of Brown for an obvious block. The play was challenged by Dallas and ultimately upheld, but Doncic's disqualification loomed large in the closing minutes of the contest.
Boston closed on a 13–6 run of its own with Doncic out of the lineup, and Irving's offensive heroics for Dallas simply weren't enough.
Tatum (31 points) and Brown (30 points), who have been much maligned by the media throughout the course of their careers, coexisted when it mattered most on the biggest stage and kept pace with Irving (35 points) and Doncic (27 points) to survive Game 3.
Game 4 is on Friday night, a 48-hour turnaround for the first time in the series. Boston will have a chance to raise its first championship banner since 2008, while Dallas will fight to keep its season alive.
