Dallas Crushes Boston by 38 Points; Fight to Keep Series Alive
Dallas - After losing Game Three at home, the Mavericks were trying to make history by overcoming a 3-0 series deficit. After winning by 38 points, 122-84, they were on track to do something that’s never been done before. It was the third-largest margin of victory in NBA playoff history. This was, without a doubt, a statement win and they have all the confidence in the world, at the moment. This was one of the worst games in Boston Celtic history and they will look to bounce back in Game Five.
Unlike Game Three, both squads came out struggling from the offensive end of the floor. Jason Kidd came up with a new game plan, inserting Dereck Lively II into the game two and a half minutes into the game. He has played much better than their starting center, Daniel Gafford. Now, the pre-determining question of this series was which super-star duo would be superior. Without a doubt, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have played consistently better than the Mavericks duo. Through the opening six minutes of the first quarter, all four players combined for all 19 points in the game. With a slight 10-0 advantage for Dallas, Luka and Kyrie were off to a good start.
As mentioned before, Lively II has been immense for the Mavericks in this postseason, much less this series. He was giving his full effort for his squad, even knocking down his first three-pointer of his career. This was the spark the Mavericks needed on offense. Lively’s three started a 10-0 run and much like the opening quarter of last game, the Mavericks held a double-digit lead. One of the biggest keys to their double-digit lead was shooting over nearly 60% from the floor compared to the Celtics 38.1%. Another huge statistical variance was that the Celtics were getting outrebounded 19-6 with only one player getting more than one rebound in the quarter. At the end of the opening quarter, the Mavericks were in good shape as they led 34-21.
Things didn’t change in the second quarter. Joe Mazzulla immediately called a timeout within a minute and a half into the quarter. The opening 14 minutes were a wake-up call for the Celtics and they needed to respond. When P.J. Washington picked up his third foul, things started to pick up for Boston. That only lasted about two possessions. Luka, being the special player that he is, was once again off to a great offensive start and he even elevated his defense. After hearing Brian Windhorst's comments about his laziness on the defensive end of the floor, Luka was determined to get rid of that rumor. Everything was simply going right for the Mavericks.
With three minutes remaining in the quarter, the Celtics finally reached 30 points on the night. The first half was an abysmal display of offense from the Celtics and that cost them deeply, putting them into a hole they would have to fight long and hard to get out of. Jayson Tatum would be the only Celtic to score in double figures while Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, and Al Horford combined for six points. On the other hand, everyone was getting involved for the Mavericks. As Mike Breen said, “It’s a Dallas domination, here in the first half.”. The scoreboard wasn’t the only thing that Dallas was dominating. Dereck Lively II almost outrebounded the entire Celtics squad as Boston had 13 team rebounds and Lively had nine by himself. Going into halftime, the Mavericks were up big time, 61-35. Boston’s 35 points was the lowest amount scored in a half under Joe Mazzulla. Even Luka and Kyrie combined to outscore the entire Celtic offense 36-35. As Boston had reached pretty much rock bottom, they could only improve in the second half. The Celtics have a history of coming from behind to win after down 20+ points. In Game Four of the 2008 Finals, the Celtics fought to win after being down 24 so they proved anything to be possible.
It’s true what they say, Scott "the extender" Foster is true to his name. Now officiating isn’t the reason that Boston was playing so poorly, but it also didn’t help. With Tatum picking up his fourth foul of the game, Boston was at a disadvantage for the rest of the game. Based on body language and lack of hustling, it was obvious that the Celtics had focused their attention on Game Five, back in Boston. There wasn't anything that went wrong for the Mavericks. Jason Kidd came with the right game plan and Joe Mazzulla didn’t make the correct adjustments. The players didn't play with the correct intensity or level of competitiveness to finish off the sweep. With 3:02 remaining in the third quarter, the Celtics starters had been pulled from the floor in preparation for Game Five. The Maverick starters were pulled soon after. At the end of the third quarter, it was all but over as the lead extended to 32 points.
Having all of the reserves in the game, it was good for them to get some experience playing in a highly competitive game. Sam Hauser made the most of his opportunities, sinking four three-pointers. Tim Hardaway Jr. got a piece of the action off the bench, scoring 15 straight points. All 15 points came from behind the arc as literally everything was going through the hoop for Dallas. The entire roster, 15 players, for the Mavericks all got playing time in their lopsided victory. Game Five will be back in Boston on Monday, June 17th.
