The discussion of these Celtics place franchise history can be put on hold. So can the overreaction to Luka Doncic’s defense.
With its season on the line, Dallas came out with a desperate energy and Doncic played like the superstar we’ve been waiting to see all series. Faced with that and the comfort of a 3-0 series lead, Boston never came close to matching that energy. There was no run. Look at it this way: Boston had the best offense (statistically) in NBA history during the regular season, a 122.2 offensive rating. In the first half of Game 4, they had a 76.1 offensive rating.
The result was a 122-84 blowout win by the Mavericks — the third largest margin of victory in NBA Finals history — which saw both teams pull their starters in the third. It forces a Game 5 Monday night in Boston.
Here are three takeaways from Game 4.
1) Desperate Dallas is the best Dallas
Was Dallas’ defense better? Yes. Was this the best Luka Doncic game of the NBA Finals? By far. That’s the Luka we’ve been waiting for.
However, any conversation about what Dallas did right starts with the desperate energy they played with from the opening tip.
“It’s real simple. We don’t have to complicate this. This isn’t surgery. Our group was ready to go. They were ready to celebrate. Understand, we made a stand. We were desperate,” Jason Kidd said. “We got to continue to keep playing that way, understand they’re trying to find a way to close the door. The hardest thing in this league is to close the door when you have a group that has nothing to lose. Tonight you saw that.”
Dallas played faster, freer, and with the motivation of a team that did not want its season to end. Everything else flowed out of that.
“We waited until Game 4 to ultimately play our best game,” Kyrie Irving said. “Took long enough for all of us to get to the party together and to play for each other the way we did tonight.
“But it’s definitely a possibility that we can replicate it. We understand we’re going against the same great Boston team that is going to make it tough. We’re going into their home den. We have another opportunity to extend the season. That’s all we can ask for.”
2) Dallas found its defensive system
This started with the fourth quarter comeback in Game 3 — the Mavericks have figured out what they want to do. They kept their bigs closer to the rim, were physical at the point of attack, had sharp rotations, got stops then turned that into transition the other way. Friday night in Game 4 was the best the Mavericks have looked on defense this series. By far.
“They did a great job flying around, making us indecisive on whether to shoot it or drive and their multiple efforts. And I thought their five men did a great job protecting the paint,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “Whenever we went in for a layup, they had multiple guys contesting. I thought they did a great job flying around on the defensive end.”
A DEFENSIVE MASTERPIECE 👌
— NBA (@NBA) June 15, 2024
Backs against the wall and the @dallasmavs defense STEPPED UP in the 122-84 win.
Game 5: Monday, 8:30pm/et, ABC pic.twitter.com/JY6HpgCiOZ
Early in the series, especially when Kristaps Porzingis was on the court, the Mavericks kept their big man higher on the floor — away from the paint — because they feared Boston’s 3-point shooting. That opened up driving lanes and led to lay-ups or drive-and-kick plays for the Celtics.
Dallas has come to the conclusion (much as it did against Oklahoma City) that its defense is best when one of its centers — Daniel Gafford or Derrick Lively — lives near the rim. The Mavericks wanted to take away the easy buckets.
It worked. Boston shot just 10-of-17 in the restricted area and 3-of-16 in the rest of the paint. The Celtics didn’t make them pay with 3s.
Can Dallas now replicate that on the road in Boston? That’s the next big test.
3) Luka Doncic answered his critics
That was MVP Luka.
He looked like himself on offense, scoring 29-points — 13 in a tone-setting first quarter — despite going 0-of-8 from 3. His passing was on point. Most importantly, he played with pace and didn’t let the Celtics offense get set.
WHAT A 1ST HALF FROM LUKA DONCIC 🔥
— NBA (@NBA) June 15, 2024
25 points, 4 assists and a 61-35 Mavs lead.
🏆 Game 4 on ABC 🏆 pic.twitter.com/YtZDjHDlKn
More importantly, Doncic defended much better. He kept Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in front of him, and three times not only kept Jrue Holiday in front of him and poked the ball away. He used his size and cut off driving lanes.
This looked a lot more like the Dallas defense from their final two Western Conference series. Whether they can sustain that in the Garden is the next big question.
