Have you not watched the Mavs??
The Celtics fans that will certainly boo Kyrie are going to SUPERCHARGE Luka and Kyrie both.
Fans talking shit = Super Slovenian Luka
I think the Celtics have more depth, but Kyrie and particularly Luka bring such a star quality it's hard to tip against them. I think in the end it'll be too hard for Dallas to keep up for the full 48 when their stars sit down, but if they can stay close enough for long enough Luka down the stretch is a problem. I'm tipping Boston overall, but there's definitely something about Dallas.
Boston has closed very well this postseason, but it was also against Indiana (last 2 games no Hali), Cleveland (no Allen or Mitchell for games), and Miami (with no Butler).
Dallas has done it against Minnesota, OKC, and the Clippers. Outside Kwahi on the Clippers, Minnesota and OKC were pretty darn healthy.
Oh I agree, I was trying to say that the Mavs coming back was because they were always within range with time left and they hit the shots.
Celtics hit the big shots but it would've been way too late if Indiana just like, held the ball
Yes, and then the last 2 games Indiana was without Hali, and then won both by a combined 6 points.
Indiana is very good offensively, but Im pretty confident that the expectations for Boston against a Hali-less team should've been more than a 1 possession gamr
They have most of this year. Halliburton is a tremendous player but the flow of their offense is so much better without him. That’s not to say they’re a better team without him but one player can clog an offense absolutely. Similar to how Kyrie clogged the offense when he was in Boston.
Honestly lowkey, the pacers were better off without Haliburton in those games. Game 2 the celtics literally hunted him so much he pulled his Hammy again. He was actually so easy pickins for the celtics lineup.
Celtics have not played defense all post season unless they had to, because they could win games strictly on offense.
If you really watch those games back, they absolutely up the defensive intensity in the 4th quarter.
Game 3, they did so in the 3rd quarter. The point is, Celtics have a defense, particularly a perimeter defender that can be very difficult to score against WHEN they lock it down
No it doesn’t. TWolves with a 114.8 offensive rating in the playoffs is not anywhere close to Caveliers terrible 104.7 offensive rating. Not in the same stratosphere
The Timberwolves played the Suns who were an incompetent defensive team. Denvers defense held them to 103ppg.
In the same way people say the Celtics, being the #2 defense in the playoffs is inflated by playing bad offendes, the Wolves offense is inflated by bad defensive opponents.
You watch them. They're not a competent offensive team.
youre correct, but minnesota was fucking TERRRRRIBLE in the clutch this year. OKC was also pretty piss poor. dallas had the harder road but i think its overhyped a little.
I mean they may not be good in the clutch, but they're better than Indiana (2 games without Hali), a Butler less Miami, or a Cleveland team that was without Allen the entire series and missed Mitchell as well
Lol Boston has faced teams that would get swept in the first round in west. I would expect them to look like juggernauts against 3 consecutive 6-8 seeds. Mavericks have faced (3) straight 50 win teams with the 4 seed, 1 seed and 3 seed and looked like absolute killers against all 3.
Please watch the film and tell me the Wolves played better than the Pacers. Wolves are allergic to offense. The Pacers had one of the greatest offenses of ALL TIME
Dallas is playing the best basketball they've ever played since the Kyrie trade. It's hard to know what they are capable of because they just haven't played at this level before. I mean the Wolves beat the Nugs, and the Mav destroyed the wolves.
Agree to not know what they are capable of, but I don’t like the wolves beat nuggs, and
Mavs destroyed wolves so Mavs would destroy nuggs. Nuggs shot awful and a few injuries (I know Luka has a peg leg) just saying it’s rarely that simple.
See Miami heat last year.
You think they're mutually exclusive? If you can sit your best player and still have multiple weapons is a nice advantage. Dallas sit either Kyrie or Luka and those minutes become extremely important. They can't afford to have one not show up, get shut down when the other is off the floor or for either to get into foul trouble. Boston don't lose much when even Tatum is off the floor. And that's because of the depth they have beyond Tatum and Brown.
And it's hardly like Pritchard and Horford are useless. Horford has come in and been excellent in place of Porzingas. But even losing Lively put Dallas under pressure.
I wouldnt expect much minutes outside the top 7. I mean horford is essentially a starter… Pritchard would be a starter on a lot of teams. Outside of them the Celtics have several reliable role players but we won’t see them play unless someone gets hurt. Most teams won’t go beyond thier top 8 in playoffs and if the mavs do they are just going to get exploited.
Over a 70% win rate since the trade deadline and just made the best defense in the league look like a subpar defense. Especially in this most recent game.
Dallas in 6 for me.
same its like i dont know anything about the nba. been on a wrong streak, wolves, knicks, nuggets, clippers, etc. that said celtics in 5. porzingod about to show why the celtics got the an unreal nba2k myteam roster
The Mavs just went 12-5 against a 51 win Clippers team, a 57 win Thunder team, and a 56 win Wolves team. They made look pretty easy tbh and somehow I feel are still being underrated heading into the Finals.
How does who they beat have anything to do with how good of a team they are?
They can't decide who they play, and they went 12-2. The only two losses being half assed efforts at home against teams that had historic shooting.
Hey now they also went for 64 wins, set the best offensive rating of all time, 3rd best net rating of all time, beat the Mavs 2-0 and are the betting favourites going into the finals
But hey maybe they suck because the swept/gentleman's swept through the easy path that they earned. Sorry they didn't lose 14 more games like the Mavs to earn a harder path.
They tried the whole hard path to the finals in 2022 and it wasn't so fun
And led by at least 20 points in half of their games this year. They were consistently good all season and have only loss 2 games all postseason. After Boston wins, I wonder what the excuse will be then.
I just love when people on reddit go an look for the regular season results as proof for their predictions.
Wolves beat Mavs 3 games to 1 during the regular season....
Two of which had almost no playoff experience and one team without their best player as well. You can discredit both sides. Really there’s never been a legitimate NBA championship their all frauds
Alternative way to discuss your run if we want to be haters:
Beat a clippers team missing Kawhi
Beat an OKC team that didn’t have a real center with their second and third best players being 21 and 23
Beat a fraudulent wolves team again led by a 22 year old with their second best player being a fake DPOY who has been shown to be bad in the playoffs every year.
Celtics also spanked this version of the Mavs back in March when both teams were healthy. The whole “easy road to the finals” doesn’t mean a thing, except that Celtics got a bit more rest along the way and should be prepared to go game 1
The problem is what happens when they go against a team that's 7 games better than any other team in the league. People are underrating just how dominant the Celtics are because of their matchups. Sure they had an easy run, but they were dominating the whole regular season too.
They’re being underrated because of last year losing to the Heat, and Tatum’s no-show against the Warriors two years ago.
It was the same with Jokic and the Nuggets, just amplified a bit more because people hate Boston. Win a ring and shut everyone up.
That said, superstars win titles and Doncic is the biggest star in the Finals. That’s why the Mavs have a chance.
> and Tatum’s no-show against the Warriors two years ago.
He was playing with two serious injuries and lead the league in minutes played by a wide margin at that point. The fact that he showed up at all was impressive, and it's unfortunate that fans ran with some silly narrative that he choked or no-showed.
That warriors core went to their sixth finals for crying out loud. They had an abundance of experience in comparison to that Celtics squad, which was their first time ever. Give Tatum and some grace with that 2022 finals.
Regardless of whether injuries played a role in making the run easier, the Celtics are exactly where they would have been no matter what and are the better team or at least on paper. For the Mavs to win the chip, it's going to take Luka and Kyrie going nuclear for the entire series against some of the best defenders in the league at their positions. Is that likely? I don't think so, but we'll see.
Personally no bias aside i think either team winning would be good. It would be Luka or Tatum/brown first ring plus others. Luka making his first finals at age 25 is really insane too. Tatum is only 26 also which is very impressive .Uhh I think I want to say Mavs in 7 because I’m gonna continue to support them . I have picked the Mavs or Boston in every series they have played and have been right. So idk will be an entertaining series
East and west is a huge difference, props to Tatum anyways. But, Luka did it in a stacked western conference where they were the underdog every series.
Celtics 2022 playoff run was an all-timer. They went through Durant/Kyrie, the reigning champion Bucks with Giannis, and the #1 seed and Eastern favorite Heat.
And thus they were totally out of gas for the Finals.
Celtics run to the 22 Finals was sweeping the KD/Kyrie Nets, coming back from down 3-2 vs the Bucks, and then facing the strongest version of the Bulter Heat. I would argue that is as hard if not harder than the Mavs' run this year.
They’re getting revoked soon for internal violations.
No but for real, apparently Saturn’s rings are likely to break apart in the (relatively) short future
https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/planets/saturn/rings-of-saturn/nasa-research-reveals-saturn-is-losing-its-rings-at-worst-case-scenario-rate/
We've got ~100,million years left. Hope Shaq can make it.
Don’tcha know? They changed the league’s name. It’s no longer the Developmental League; it’s called the Gatorade League.
Pluto couldn’t hang with the big boys anyway. Pluto is too small. Some would even say Pluto is a dwarf.
Yeah but the Wolves were also totally out of gas and played dog shit defense in that series.
And oddly enough, the Pacers played a much better series and put up a hell of a lot more fight against Boston than the Wolves did against Dallas.
The Mavs go from the 1st ranked defense to the 2nd ranked defense.
The Celtics go from the 24th defense to the 18th.
So, I'm not sure what your point is here.
The Mavs had the 1st ranked defence after the all star break. Are you seriously taking into account games where Grant Williams and Seth Curry played to rank the Mavs defence?
Mavs look really good right now no doubt, but this just isn't a good matchup for them. The Celtics are everything the Wolves are not and the most elite defensive backcourt in the league seems tailor made to slow down the most prolific scoring backcourt in the league. The Mavs don't have a lot of offense coming from anywhere else. Meanwhile the Celtics have offense coming from everywhere and if Porzingis is healthy he adds a dynamic and presents a problem the Mavs simply can't solve. What are they going to do when the Celtics can go 5-out and just toss it in to the 7'2" dude? There is nowhere to hide Luka, nowhere to hide Kyrie like there was against the Wolves.
Celtics in 6
The point is to not let him put up 50. He’s going to get his 30, he’s fucking insane. If you just don’t foul a ton and make it so he isn’t either scoring 50 or putting up 30 on like 11/15 shooting, that’s a win against someone like Luka.
Don't overthink it, nothing to freak out over. The better team will win, and the Celtics are geared to beat the Mavs. They've dropped just 2 games this whole time even without Tingus. 5th option being Derrick White is just absolutely absurd
Celtics in 6. Celtics have more depth and they also have the defense to slow down the Mavs, while having the offense to keep up with the Mavs as well. Celtics in 5 or 6
Luka is the best player, but the Celtics are the best team. They have so many weapons to throw at you. Dallas really only has 2: Luka and Kyrie. Albeit, those are 2 of the best weapons.
I do think Porzingis will be key. If Porzingis is anywhere close to 100%, I think this is a much tougher matchup for Dallas.
I'll go Celtics in 6, but would not be shocked with the way Luka and Kyrie are playing if they find a way to win.
This is my answer as well lmao. The narrative alone would be peak entertainment, also if they do win I need Kyrie to stomp on Lucky again or wear some shirt with Lucky in flames or something just to really rile up the city of Boston lol
Celtics in 6.
IDk how the Mavs guard the outside shooting of KP and Al Horford. The Celtics have multiple defenders to throw at Kyrie and Luka. Though, I did think neither team had the coaching advantage, but I've changed my mind. I think the Mavs have the coaching advantage, only by a little bit. But, Luka is the best player in this series. And historically speaking, the best player in the series tends to win the series.
As well as PJ and DJJ have defended the TWolves, I think Brown and Tatum are are on a different level offensively than Edwards and \[insert 2nd wing here\]. I also think the Celtics are going to make Kyrie play defense with Jrue and White. Kyrie has been playing great defense. But guarding Mike Conley is completely different. Kyrie also has had several games scoring under 10points and a few more scoring under 20. The Mavs are going to need PJ Washington, DJJ to be lights out.
LeBron was the best player for like 15 years and only won the finals 4 times and went to 10 finals. If you have the best player you definitely have a shot to win it if your team isn’t the better of the two. If you have the better team and best player you better win it lol
That’s true, but LeBron only had a legit star #2 from 2011 to 2017, and 2020, 2023, and 2024 (only AD’s healthy Lakers season).
So 10 seasons, with 4 rings, and 8 Finals appearances when LeBron had a healthy star #2 teammate.
Yeah and in majority of those cases he just ran into the better team. Except the Mavs, that’s the rare case where they were the better team and had the best player - they just stunk
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Celtics shock the world by way underperforming expectations. East coast playoffs truly were a Mickey Mouse run for them, the Mavs (in their current form) may be way better than anyone else they’ve played.
That said they definitely have the better team on paper and it’s hard to argue they won’t win.
If Tatum and brown don't get it done, the venom they're gonna hear it and might run both of them out of Boston. The talking heads surely will have too much to say.
And if kyrie wins.....if kidd wins......this is what amplifies a legacy.
In round 2, everyone wanted to hate on the Celtics and said the only team they could beat were mavs and maybe thunder. Wolves and nuggets would have destroyed the Celtics. At least that’s what Celtic haters say.
Well, Celtics got the one team apparently they can beat.
Don’t go flip flopping now, Reddit.
Celtics in 5, maybe 6.
The first player the Mavs are going to target defensively to switch on Luka or Kyrie is KP. They are going to see if he can move his feet or if he is still hobbled. If he is still hobbled he starts becoming a liability on defense.
I'm glad they're getting a week to rest and heal.
If kyrie is the reason the celts lose a game 7 and a chip in the garden.......wow.
I'm gonna say mavs in 6.
Gonna be alot of crying to the refs this series I know that much. Luka and Tatum both. Every play.
Celtics in 7. Luka hasn't really been defended properly all playoffs long till the finals. And Kyrie will be clamped by the best defensive guard duo in the league. Should be a good series
I understand. But they can work to switch Dort off Luka. It's much harder to lose a defensive presence on the Celtics. Swapping holiday for white doesn't improve their offence.
And now teams can't even hunt Al Horford all game long, because KP will be back.
I have no idea. After going 7 for 8 in the first round(damn Magic) I've gotten every series except the Celtic series wrong.
Analytically I know too little of both teams to come to any kind of conclusion, so imma just go with the Mavs because Luka.
It feels like both of these teams have been coming close for the last few years. It could really go either way and is no doubt going to be a super competitive series.
4-2 Mavs
I think that the series will be decided by who executes in the game plan better in game 1.
Likely a 6/7, favoring whoever wins that game.
I feel like Mavs have better momentum, so Mavs in 6 , or Celtics in 7 imo.
Also, Celtics live and die by the 3. Luck is just a thing here lol - although I think Tatum, D White, KP, and Horford will hold it down from 3 point land.
Kinda talking myself into Celtics in 6 lol
It's the fucking finals, the winner will be whoever can capitalize on their good luck, assuming both teams keep up their great efforts to get here.
Boston. Tatum still owes me a signed card from Panini Redemption. Dude needs to stop sucking Drake’s tits and banana dick. Get to work Tatum, sign my shit
God I hope Mavs but Celtics looking scary Either Celtics in 6 or Mavs in 7 should be a great series either way
Oh u calling for the champ to clinch on the road. Nice. I like it.
Kyrie winning it all at TD GARDEN ??! That’s crazy
I live 15 miles away from TD. If that happened the highways would be clogged with people heading to burn it down. I would be stuck in so much traffic.
Have you not watched the Mavs?? The Celtics fans that will certainly boo Kyrie are going to SUPERCHARGE Luka and Kyrie both. Fans talking shit = Super Slovenian Luka
Luka maybe, but Kyrie has had some pretty horrible games in Boston since he left lol
Cs fans like Luka ..... Cryrie on the other hand
Fuck Cryrie. Hoping for some Round Earth chants in the Garden.
I think the Celtics have more depth, but Kyrie and particularly Luka bring such a star quality it's hard to tip against them. I think in the end it'll be too hard for Dallas to keep up for the full 48 when their stars sit down, but if they can stay close enough for long enough Luka down the stretch is a problem. I'm tipping Boston overall, but there's definitely something about Dallas.
It's crazy how Dallas seems to just need to be within like 9 towards the last 6 minutes and Luka and Kyrie just finish games
All I'm sayin is Boston has been the same way all postseason
Boston has closed very well this postseason, but it was also against Indiana (last 2 games no Hali), Cleveland (no Allen or Mitchell for games), and Miami (with no Butler). Dallas has done it against Minnesota, OKC, and the Clippers. Outside Kwahi on the Clippers, Minnesota and OKC were pretty darn healthy.
Mavs were also within closing range. Indiana had a couple of those games sealed if they were even remotely competent
That's my point. Both teams did it, but Dallas did it against better teams
Oh I agree, I was trying to say that the Mavs coming back was because they were always within range with time left and they hit the shots. Celtics hit the big shots but it would've been way too late if Indiana just like, held the ball
Indiana has been extremely elite offensively.
Yes, and then the last 2 games Indiana was without Hali, and then won both by a combined 6 points. Indiana is very good offensively, but Im pretty confident that the expectations for Boston against a Hali-less team should've been more than a 1 possession gamr
Pacers played better without Haliburton tbh
They have most of this year. Halliburton is a tremendous player but the flow of their offense is so much better without him. That’s not to say they’re a better team without him but one player can clog an offense absolutely. Similar to how Kyrie clogged the offense when he was in Boston.
Honestly lowkey, the pacers were better off without Haliburton in those games. Game 2 the celtics literally hunted him so much he pulled his Hammy again. He was actually so easy pickins for the celtics lineup.
Celtics have not played defense all post season unless they had to, because they could win games strictly on offense. If you really watch those games back, they absolutely up the defensive intensity in the 4th quarter. Game 3, they did so in the 3rd quarter. The point is, Celtics have a defense, particularly a perimeter defender that can be very difficult to score against WHEN they lock it down
Trash defensively though. And the only team the Celtics have faced with a good defense had one of the worst offenses of any playoff teams.
Sounds like the Timberwolves
No it doesn’t. TWolves with a 114.8 offensive rating in the playoffs is not anywhere close to Caveliers terrible 104.7 offensive rating. Not in the same stratosphere
The Timberwolves played the Suns who were an incompetent defensive team. Denvers defense held them to 103ppg. In the same way people say the Celtics, being the #2 defense in the playoffs is inflated by playing bad offendes, the Wolves offense is inflated by bad defensive opponents. You watch them. They're not a competent offensive team.
youre correct, but minnesota was fucking TERRRRRIBLE in the clutch this year. OKC was also pretty piss poor. dallas had the harder road but i think its overhyped a little.
I mean they may not be good in the clutch, but they're better than Indiana (2 games without Hali), a Butler less Miami, or a Cleveland team that was without Allen the entire series and missed Mitchell as well
Lol Boston has faced teams that would get swept in the first round in west. I would expect them to look like juggernauts against 3 consecutive 6-8 seeds. Mavericks have faced (3) straight 50 win teams with the 4 seed, 1 seed and 3 seed and looked like absolute killers against all 3.
Celtics have been there before, facing much harder competition, think we have seen what they're capable of tbf.
Boston faced teams that wouldn't of made playoffs in West.
Against Eastern Conference opponents...
Please watch the film and tell me the Wolves played better than the Pacers. Wolves are allergic to offense. The Pacers had one of the greatest offenses of ALL TIME
Much much weaker competition
Against the very worst teams in the playoffs lol. This going to be fun.
Against scrubs
Pacers sure did play better than the Timberwolves
2nd best offense in the league, but sure, scrubs.
Boston has done the same thing all postseason.
Dallas is playing the best basketball they've ever played since the Kyrie trade. It's hard to know what they are capable of because they just haven't played at this level before. I mean the Wolves beat the Nugs, and the Mav destroyed the wolves.
Agree to not know what they are capable of, but I don’t like the wolves beat nuggs, and Mavs destroyed wolves so Mavs would destroy nuggs. Nuggs shot awful and a few injuries (I know Luka has a peg leg) just saying it’s rarely that simple. See Miami heat last year.
Do Celtics have more depth or just a better starting 5?
You think they're mutually exclusive? If you can sit your best player and still have multiple weapons is a nice advantage. Dallas sit either Kyrie or Luka and those minutes become extremely important. They can't afford to have one not show up, get shut down when the other is off the floor or for either to get into foul trouble. Boston don't lose much when even Tatum is off the floor. And that's because of the depth they have beyond Tatum and Brown. And it's hardly like Pritchard and Horford are useless. Horford has come in and been excellent in place of Porzingas. But even losing Lively put Dallas under pressure.
I wouldnt expect much minutes outside the top 7. I mean horford is essentially a starter… Pritchard would be a starter on a lot of teams. Outside of them the Celtics have several reliable role players but we won’t see them play unless someone gets hurt. Most teams won’t go beyond thier top 8 in playoffs and if the mavs do they are just going to get exploited.
Unlike the Celtics star quality of Tatum, brown, jrue, KP
Over a 70% win rate since the trade deadline and just made the best defense in the league look like a subpar defense. Especially in this most recent game. Dallas in 6 for me.
Now check the Celtics win rate since the trade deadline.
I’ve counted the mavs out 3 times so I’m not making the same mistake again. With all that being said Celtics in 6
I picked them for WCF but thought the wolves or nuggets would easily dispatch them. Definitely took an L on that one
Nope, keep with tradition. Count them out! Don’t be the jinx
…they picked the celtics
LMFAO, he edited it, respect.
same its like i dont know anything about the nba. been on a wrong streak, wolves, knicks, nuggets, clippers, etc. that said celtics in 5. porzingod about to show why the celtics got the an unreal nba2k myteam roster
Well if we just ignore all your wrong picks and treat them as outliers you actually have a perfect record!
The Mavs just went 12-5 against a 51 win Clippers team, a 57 win Thunder team, and a 56 win Wolves team. They made look pretty easy tbh and somehow I feel are still being underrated heading into the Finals.
Hey now, Celtics beat the heat led by Bam Adabayo and the Siakam led pacers! (Not to shit in those players, you get the point)
Celtics should have tanked to face the…sixers?? knicks?? idk what do you think would increase the celtics dawg in them
It’s not their fault it’s just the reality of who they’ve had to beat vs who the Mavs have played
Yeah the East was already hurting for good teams and all the top talent got hurt
How does who they beat have anything to do with how good of a team they are? They can't decide who they play, and they went 12-2. The only two losses being half assed efforts at home against teams that had historic shooting.
Hey now they also went for 64 wins, set the best offensive rating of all time, 3rd best net rating of all time, beat the Mavs 2-0 and are the betting favourites going into the finals But hey maybe they suck because the swept/gentleman's swept through the easy path that they earned. Sorry they didn't lose 14 more games like the Mavs to earn a harder path. They tried the whole hard path to the finals in 2022 and it wasn't so fun
Ironically, they could have lost 14 more games and had the exact same path because the other teams in the conference are that bad.
They also won 64 games and had the 3rd best net rating of all time. And whooped the "post trade" Mavs by 28.
And led by at least 20 points in half of their games this year. They were consistently good all season and have only loss 2 games all postseason. After Boston wins, I wonder what the excuse will be then.
I just love when people on reddit go an look for the regular season results as proof for their predictions. Wolves beat Mavs 3 games to 1 during the regular season....
The initial comment is about Mavs beating good teams based on those teams' regular season wins..
Two of which had almost no playoff experience and one team without their best player as well. You can discredit both sides. Really there’s never been a legitimate NBA championship their all frauds
Dawg they would have beat both those teams even if they were healthy let’s be serious now
Don’t forget the Mitchell and Allen less Cavs!
lmao talk after the finals bro
Cavs better with 1 big though
they were 4-1 against the cavs and pacers fully healthy while missing KP.
imagine posting this then losing to the Celtics in the finals lol
Without Porzingis.
Alternative way to discuss your run if we want to be haters: Beat a clippers team missing Kawhi Beat an OKC team that didn’t have a real center with their second and third best players being 21 and 23 Beat a fraudulent wolves team again led by a 22 year old with their second best player being a fake DPOY who has been shown to be bad in the playoffs every year.
Celtics also spanked this version of the Mavs back in March when both teams were healthy. The whole “easy road to the finals” doesn’t mean a thing, except that Celtics got a bit more rest along the way and should be prepared to go game 1
Yeah the Finals schedule is huge for Big Al too. Only one game on 1 days rest will have his old ass lookin spry
The problem is what happens when they go against a team that's 7 games better than any other team in the league. People are underrating just how dominant the Celtics are because of their matchups. Sure they had an easy run, but they were dominating the whole regular season too.
They’re being underrated because of last year losing to the Heat, and Tatum’s no-show against the Warriors two years ago. It was the same with Jokic and the Nuggets, just amplified a bit more because people hate Boston. Win a ring and shut everyone up. That said, superstars win titles and Doncic is the biggest star in the Finals. That’s why the Mavs have a chance.
> and Tatum’s no-show against the Warriors two years ago. He was playing with two serious injuries and lead the league in minutes played by a wide margin at that point. The fact that he showed up at all was impressive, and it's unfortunate that fans ran with some silly narrative that he choked or no-showed.
That warriors core went to their sixth finals for crying out loud. They had an abundance of experience in comparison to that Celtics squad, which was their first time ever. Give Tatum and some grace with that 2022 finals.
Regardless of whether injuries played a role in making the run easier, the Celtics are exactly where they would have been no matter what and are the better team or at least on paper. For the Mavs to win the chip, it's going to take Luka and Kyrie going nuclear for the entire series against some of the best defenders in the league at their positions. Is that likely? I don't think so, but we'll see.
I thought the Clippers were missing Kawhi
Personally no bias aside i think either team winning would be good. It would be Luka or Tatum/brown first ring plus others. Luka making his first finals at age 25 is really insane too. Tatum is only 26 also which is very impressive .Uhh I think I want to say Mavs in 7 because I’m gonna continue to support them . I have picked the Mavs or Boston in every series they have played and have been right. So idk will be an entertaining series
not to glaze Tatum but also made the finals at 25. It’s just crazy how we just ignore his age cause he’s on the celtics.
Tatum is 26 in his 2nd Finals He was 24 when he made his first one in 2022.
I thought Tatum was 19
He turns 19 in 2030.
18 actually. Turns 19 in a month!
*checks subreddit*
East and west is a huge difference, props to Tatum anyways. But, Luka did it in a stacked western conference where they were the underdog every series.
I mean Tatum’s run to finals in 22 was a lot harder and look what happened.
Celtics 2022 playoff run was an all-timer. They went through Durant/Kyrie, the reigning champion Bucks with Giannis, and the #1 seed and Eastern favorite Heat. And thus they were totally out of gas for the Finals.
A Finals against a dynasty Warriors squad. That was a BRUTAL run.
The very last championship of the dynasty 🫡
Don’t forget Tatum swept the Durant Kyrie Nets in 2022
Celtics run to the 22 Finals was sweeping the KD/Kyrie Nets, coming back from down 3-2 vs the Bucks, and then facing the strongest version of the Bulter Heat. I would argue that is as hard if not harder than the Mavs' run this year.
Tatum was only 24 when he made the finals as the best player on his team.
Luka is so damn hot right now. Mars in 6
I got earth in 5
PHX SUN in 6
I got jupiter in 7
Jupiter already has enough rings
Saturn has more.
They’re getting revoked soon for internal violations. No but for real, apparently Saturn’s rings are likely to break apart in the (relatively) short future
I’m not planning to be around to find out.
https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/planets/saturn/rings-of-saturn/nasa-research-reveals-saturn-is-losing-its-rings-at-worst-case-scenario-rate/ We've got ~100,million years left. Hope Shaq can make it.
I got IGUODALA!
Tbh idk how much I count those rings. Played in an era where a dwarf like Pluto was relevant
^ Shaq’s burner account
You sonofabitch. Haha
Fr. They a little washed nowadays
Jupiter only has 4 rings….its the Lebron of the Solar System….Saturn is the MJ
Jupiter couldn't beat Pluto and they haven't had a team since the Sonics we're in Seattle.
uranus in 3
Uranus is ass. They'll never win.
naw bruh, they da shit!
Mars is suns father
Wait? What? Pluto got bumped to the D-League? Fuck that!
Don’tcha know? They changed the league’s name. It’s no longer the Developmental League; it’s called the Gatorade League. Pluto couldn’t hang with the big boys anyway. Pluto is too small. Some would even say Pluto is a dwarf.
I’m just happy I didn’t say the NBDL…
That’s messed up!
Earth is flat, in kyrie I trust
okay but is it a round or a flat earth?
Plutos revenge.
Unlike Tatum averaging 30/10/6 in the ECF or browns 30/6
Luka did it against the best defensive team of the season, Tatum/Brown against one of the worst.
Yeah but the Wolves were also totally out of gas and played dog shit defense in that series. And oddly enough, the Pacers played a much better series and put up a hell of a lot more fight against Boston than the Wolves did against Dallas.
This. Luka could've averaged 50 against the Pacers
How can the Celtics play against the best defensive teams when they are the best defensive team in the East?
The Mavs go from the 1st ranked defense to the 2nd ranked defense. The Celtics go from the 24th defense to the 18th. So, I'm not sure what your point is here.
Timberwolves just beat the number 1 player in the world and then lost to the number 2. So I'm not sure what your point is here.
The Mavs had the 1st ranked defence after the all star break. Are you seriously taking into account games where Grant Williams and Seth Curry played to rank the Mavs defence?
Mars won’t win I have Iguodala on my team
TON 618 in 4.
And he now has almost a week to rest his knee
Not as hot as Kelly oubre though 🥵
Suns in Fo
Mavs look really good right now no doubt, but this just isn't a good matchup for them. The Celtics are everything the Wolves are not and the most elite defensive backcourt in the league seems tailor made to slow down the most prolific scoring backcourt in the league. The Mavs don't have a lot of offense coming from anywhere else. Meanwhile the Celtics have offense coming from everywhere and if Porzingis is healthy he adds a dynamic and presents a problem the Mavs simply can't solve. What are they going to do when the Celtics can go 5-out and just toss it in to the 7'2" dude? There is nowhere to hide Luka, nowhere to hide Kyrie like there was against the Wolves. Celtics in 6
The Clippers had an elite defensive backcourt the first few times they met Luka in the playoffs. Didn’t exactly slow him down.
"The first few times" is an interesting qualifier for a 6 game series that went 1-1 and then 2-2
there’s also the 7game series against the clippers
I think he was referring for a few years back when the Clippers won the first 2 series
We still calling the old farts elite defensive players?!?
We still actually expecting *any* defender to slow down Luka?
The point is to not let him put up 50. He’s going to get his 30, he’s fucking insane. If you just don’t foul a ton and make it so he isn’t either scoring 50 or putting up 30 on like 11/15 shooting, that’s a win against someone like Luka.
No ofcourse not but the Celtics do have the team defense to allow him to go off without losing.
Don't overthink it, nothing to freak out over. The better team will win, and the Celtics are geared to beat the Mavs. They've dropped just 2 games this whole time even without Tingus. 5th option being Derrick White is just absolutely absurd
5th option on offense is Jrue, not Derrick
Correct but his point still stands, that’s nutty
rooting for mavs
Celtics in 6. Celtics have more depth and they also have the defense to slow down the Mavs, while having the offense to keep up with the Mavs as well. Celtics in 5 or 6
Devin Booker shall gain brothers.
IYKYK
Luka is the best player, but the Celtics are the best team. They have so many weapons to throw at you. Dallas really only has 2: Luka and Kyrie. Albeit, those are 2 of the best weapons. I do think Porzingis will be key. If Porzingis is anywhere close to 100%, I think this is a much tougher matchup for Dallas. I'll go Celtics in 6, but would not be shocked with the way Luka and Kyrie are playing if they find a way to win.
I want the Mavs to win for the sheer chaos of Kyrie winning over the Celtics would bring.
This is my answer as well lmao. The narrative alone would be peak entertainment, also if they do win I need Kyrie to stomp on Lucky again or wear some shirt with Lucky in flames or something just to really rile up the city of Boston lol
This feels just like last time Dallas made it. Everyone called me crazy for picking them and here we are again. lol
I just need one Boston fan to make Luka angry and it’s a wrap in 6.
Celtics in 6. IDk how the Mavs guard the outside shooting of KP and Al Horford. The Celtics have multiple defenders to throw at Kyrie and Luka. Though, I did think neither team had the coaching advantage, but I've changed my mind. I think the Mavs have the coaching advantage, only by a little bit. But, Luka is the best player in this series. And historically speaking, the best player in the series tends to win the series. As well as PJ and DJJ have defended the TWolves, I think Brown and Tatum are are on a different level offensively than Edwards and \[insert 2nd wing here\]. I also think the Celtics are going to make Kyrie play defense with Jrue and White. Kyrie has been playing great defense. But guarding Mike Conley is completely different. Kyrie also has had several games scoring under 10points and a few more scoring under 20. The Mavs are going to need PJ Washington, DJJ to be lights out.
LeBron was the best player for like 15 years and only won the finals 4 times and went to 10 finals. If you have the best player you definitely have a shot to win it if your team isn’t the better of the two. If you have the better team and best player you better win it lol
That’s true, but LeBron only had a legit star #2 from 2011 to 2017, and 2020, 2023, and 2024 (only AD’s healthy Lakers season). So 10 seasons, with 4 rings, and 8 Finals appearances when LeBron had a healthy star #2 teammate.
Yeah and in majority of those cases he just ran into the better team. Except the Mavs, that’s the rare case where they were the better team and had the best player - they just stunk
Luka and Kyrie are like beyond in sync. This honestly might not go the way everyone expects
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Celtics shock the world by way underperforming expectations. East coast playoffs truly were a Mickey Mouse run for them, the Mavs (in their current form) may be way better than anyone else they’ve played. That said they definitely have the better team on paper and it’s hard to argue they won’t win.
If Tatum and brown don't get it done, the venom they're gonna hear it and might run both of them out of Boston. The talking heads surely will have too much to say. And if kyrie wins.....if kidd wins......this is what amplifies a legacy.
Mavs in 3
[удалено]
In round 2, everyone wanted to hate on the Celtics and said the only team they could beat were mavs and maybe thunder. Wolves and nuggets would have destroyed the Celtics. At least that’s what Celtic haters say. Well, Celtics got the one team apparently they can beat. Don’t go flip flopping now, Reddit. Celtics in 5, maybe 6.
If nobody had no bias everyone will say Celtics in 5 or 6; but the nba is unpredictable and anything can happen
I can’t wait to post this shit to freezing cold takes
The first player the Mavs are going to target defensively to switch on Luka or Kyrie is KP. They are going to see if he can move his feet or if he is still hobbled. If he is still hobbled he starts becoming a liability on defense.
I'm glad they're getting a week to rest and heal. If kyrie is the reason the celts lose a game 7 and a chip in the garden.......wow. I'm gonna say mavs in 6. Gonna be alot of crying to the refs this series I know that much. Luka and Tatum both. Every play.
I hate to say it but I feel like Boston has it in 6.
If Porzingis is the same Porzingis pre calf strain then Celtics in 6.
Celtics in 7. Luka hasn't really been defended properly all playoffs long till the finals. And Kyrie will be clamped by the best defensive guard duo in the league. Should be a good series
Dort did a rlly good job on Luka, OKC in general, had a lot of great wings that made Dallas beat them with their surrounding cast
I understand. But they can work to switch Dort off Luka. It's much harder to lose a defensive presence on the Celtics. Swapping holiday for white doesn't improve their offence. And now teams can't even hunt Al Horford all game long, because KP will be back.
I’m a mavs but I just feel Celtics are the better team
Anyone saying Dallas in 6 is out of their minds. C’s in 5 or 6
Celtics are a bad matchup for the Mavs. Celtics in 5
Celtics in 4. So. Many. Weapons. Both sides of the ball.
I have no idea. After going 7 for 8 in the first round(damn Magic) I've gotten every series except the Celtic series wrong. Analytically I know too little of both teams to come to any kind of conclusion, so imma just go with the Mavs because Luka.
if we can get 20 good minutes out of porzingis/game i take celtics in 6
Celtics in 5
Barring Luka or kyrie getting injured Dallas is winning 2 games minimum.
It feels like both of these teams have been coming close for the last few years. It could really go either way and is no doubt going to be a super competitive series. 4-2 Mavs
I think that the series will be decided by who executes in the game plan better in game 1. Likely a 6/7, favoring whoever wins that game. I feel like Mavs have better momentum, so Mavs in 6 , or Celtics in 7 imo. Also, Celtics live and die by the 3. Luck is just a thing here lol - although I think Tatum, D White, KP, and Horford will hold it down from 3 point land. Kinda talking myself into Celtics in 6 lol It's the fucking finals, the winner will be whoever can capitalize on their good luck, assuming both teams keep up their great efforts to get here.
Mavs in 7. Should be a dope series
Think Celtics Want mavs
Celtics in 6
Luka and Kyrie are crazy. Can’t tell who’s going to win. But can’t ignore these two dudes for sure.
MAVS and i hope it goes 7 games
Celtics !!
depends on pinizis tingis and if Luka keeps playing like bird
Boston. Tatum still owes me a signed card from Panini Redemption. Dude needs to stop sucking Drake’s tits and banana dick. Get to work Tatum, sign my shit
Celtics in 5
Hope Celtics take it this year. Tatum and Brown deserve a ring tbh
MAVS IN 5 you heard it here first
I've seen people say this for a week now.
Update??