The Los Angeles Clippers had a prime opportunity to seize control of their series against the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5. Instead, Paul George and Co. got blown at home, losing 123-93, and are now facing elimination in Friday night’s Game 6 in Dallas.
George had a bad night for the Clippers, scoring just 15 points on 4-of-13 shooting. The Clippers were without Kawhi Leonard and needed their other star to come out and set the tone for the team in a huge game, but that didn’t come close to happening.
George spoke after the game, saying, “You work your tail off all summer. You train for these moments. To where, if you fail, you fail. Live with the results.”
Shaquille O’Neal was not a fan of those comments and explained why during Thursday night’s Inside the NBA:
Paul George: You work your tail off all summer. You train for these moments. To where, if you fail, you fail. Live with the results.”
Shaq and Chuck don’t agree.
Shaq: When you’re that guy, you get all the money you get all the praise, you are expected to step up. pic.twitter.com/NyQH9qhrb7
Leonard will be out again for Game 6, so the Clippers will need George to put Game 5 behind him in a hurry or the franchise will have another early exit from the NBA playoffs.
The Los Angeles Clippers lost to the Dallas Mavericks 114-101 in Game 6 on Friday night, ending their season short of the lofty goals set before them.
With his team out of the playoffs, and the Los Angeles Lakers sporting one of the most sought-after coaching openings in the NBA, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue was forced to address his future in the wake of Friday's loss. Lue has been reported as one of the Lakers' top targets, while a separate report indicated that the Clippers are very interested in retaining him.
As for Lue, he'd prefer to stick around with the Clippers.
"I didn't come here to bounce around and go all over the place," Lue said in the wake of his team's 114-101 loss. "Mr. Ballmer, Lawrence [Frank], Mark [Hughes] and Trent [Redden] have all been great to me. This is where I want to be. Hopefully they feel the same way."
Clippers coach Ty Lue on his future: “I didn’t come here to bounce around and go all over the place. Mr. Ballmer, Lawrence (Frank), Mark (Hughes), and Trent (Redden) have all been great to me. This is where I want to be. Hopefully, they feel the same way.” pic.twitter.com/4OC6FsYzNN
Time will tell whether or not Lue will ultimately remain with the Clippers, who enter the offseason with plenty of roster questions ahead of next season. What happens with James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Paul George and ultimately Lue, will determine whether or not the Clippers remain competitive next season.
The 2024 NBA Finals tip off on Thursday night, as the Boston Celtics look to add an 11th Larry O'Brien Trophy to their trophy case, while the Dallas Mavericks look to secure the franchise's second-ever NBA title.
For viewing purposes, getting the opportunity to see a seven-game series between the Celtics and Mavericks would be wildly entertaining. It's somewhat uncommon for an NBA Finals series to go the full seven games, however. Throughout history, the NBA Finals has gone the full distance of seven games only 19 times.
Most recently, the 2016 NBA Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors was decided in seven games, but the past seven championships have been decided quicker than that.
Here's a look at every NBA Finals series that has gone seven games:
YEAR
MATCHUP
1951
Rochester Royals def. New York Knicks
1952
Minneapolis Lakers def. New York Knicks
1954
Minneapolis Lakers def. Syracuse Nationals
1955
Syracuse Nationals def. Fort Wayne Pistons
1957
Boston Celtics def. St. Louis Hawks
1960
Boston Celtics def. St. Louis Hawks
1962
Boston Celtics def. Los Angeles Lakers
1966
Boston Celtics def. Los Angeles Lakers
1969
Boston Celtics def. Los Angeles Lakers
1970
New York Knicks def. Los Angeles Lakers
1974
Boston Celtics def. Milwaukee Bucks
1978
Washington Bullets def. Seattle Supersonics
1984
Boston Celtics def. Los Angeles Lakers
1988
Los Angeles Lakers def. Detroit Pistons
1994
Houston Rockets def. New York Knicks
2005
San Antonio Spurs def. Detroit Pistons
2010
Los Angeles Lakers def. Boston Celtics
2013
Miami Heat def. San Antonio Spurs
2016
Cleveland Cavaliers def. Golden State Warriors
Game 7's have been few and far between in recent history. Since 1995, only four NBA Finals series have reached the coveted seventh game.
Of course, those that have gone the distance have resulted in some iconic moments, including the Cavaliers becoming the first team in league history to overcome a 3–1 deficit in the Finals in '16 against the Warriors.
Of the 19 Game 7's in NBA Finals history, only two have gone to overtime, and none since 1962 when the Celtics took down the Lakers.
At long last, the NBA Finals are just a day away, and I’m ready to lock in three plays for Game 1 – all of which end up being on the Boston side.
Earlier this week, I made my official prediction for this series (Boston Celtics in 6), and like many NBA fans, I’m ready for this series between Boston and the Dallas Mavericks to start.
This season, I’ve bet on the NBA every day that there have been games, and while we’re not positive on the year at the moment, a Celtics preseason future could get us there – depending upon how these Finals go.
We’re starting strong in Game 1 with three plays – two props and one side – with Boston entering the game as a 6.5-point favorite.
Eastern Conference Finals MVP Jaylen Brown has been terrific in the playoffs, averaging 25.0 points per game while shooting 54.3 percent from the field and 36.8 percent from 3-point range.
Brown has been much more efficient than Jayson Tatum, and he finds himself with a points prop that is four points lower than his co-star in Game 1.
I love the OVER here for Brown, who has cleared 22.5 points in nine of his 14 playoff games, including all four of his matchups in the Eastern Conference Finals.
While the return of Kristaps Porzingis could eat into Brown’s usage, I don’t expect KP to return to his normal role in his first game back from a calf injury. Brown has played a ton of minutes, clearing 40 in three of his last five games, and he’s taken at least 17 shots in 11 of 14 games this postseason.
JB has some serious value at this number ahead of Game 1.
Jrue Holiday OVER 22.5 Points, Rebounds and Assists (-122) – 0.5 unit
Jrue Holiday may not win an ECF MVP or Finals MVP, but he has been a massive difference maker in his first season in Boston.
Holiday’s defensive prowess makes him a staple in Joe Mazzulla’s rotation, and dating back to the second round he’s really stuffed the stat sheet overall.
Holiday is averaging 17.3 points, 6.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game over his last seven games, clearing 22.5 PRA in six of those contests.
I imagine Holiday will draw the assignment on either Luka Doncic or Kyrie Irving, and he should play heavy minutes in Game 1. Betting on Boston props is a little volatile since we don’t know Porzingis’ usage, but this number has dropped significantly for Holiday compared to the 25.5 and 26.5’s that we saw in the Eastern Conference Finals.
The only NBA champion on the Boston roster should continue his strong play in Game 1.
Boston Celtics -6.5 (-110) vs. Dallas Mavericks – 0.5 unit
I think that bodes well for a Boston team that covered in two of its three Game 1s so far this postseason and was 37-4 straight up at home in the regular season. The C’s also posted a 26-21-2 against the spread record as home favorites this season, winning those games by an average margin of victory of 14.4 points.
I have a lot of respect for the run Dallas made, but Jason Kidd’s team has struggled in Game 1s since he took over, going 1-5 straight up and losing four of those five games by seven or more points.
Boston – the best team in the NBA all season long – has been disrespected in my eyes entering this series. It went 12-2 on its run to the Finals and easily posted the best net rating of any team in the playoffs.
I’ll lay the points with the C’s in Game 1.
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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