The Slovenian Luka Doncic led this Friday with 29 points a monumental festival by the Dallas Mavericks, who, down 0-3 in the NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics, triumphed 122-84 in the fourth game at the American Airlines Center in Dallas to bring the series back to TD Garden.
No team has managed to come back from 0-3 in an NBA playoff series in 156 previous ones, but the Mavericks don’t pay attention to the math. They clung to their options with a fierce reaction of pride in their field against the Celtics who, after ten consecutive victories in this postseason, left a poor image on their first match point.
The Mavericks had a maximum lead of 48 points and crushed the Celtics who, despite this defeat, remain solidly in command and will be able to win the title this Monday at the TD Garden in Boston.
This victory was the third largest in the history of the NBA Finals. The record is 42 and is held by Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls, who defeated the Utah Jazz 96-54 in the 1998 Finals.
Under the gaze of Spaniard Sergio Ramos, sitting on the field wearing a Doncic jersey, the Slovenian star scored 29 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals in 32 minutes on the court. With more than 30 points ahead, he was able to rest the entire fourth quarter, a true blessing for him, who has had knee and chest problems for weeks.
His zero of eight in triples remained an anecdote, as well as Kyrie Irving’s one of six from the arc (21 points, 4 rebounds and 6 assists). And if the triple didn’t work for the two stars, Tim Hardaway Jr came out with five of six attempts and fifteen points, the first of a series in which until now he had barely had a role.
AFP
Rookie Derek Lively sealed a double double of eleven points and twelve rebounds coming off the bench that revealed the passivity of the Celtics which until this Friday had been colossal in this series.
With the Latvian Kristaps Porzingis officially available, but without minutes in Joe Mazzulla’s rotation so as not to risk after his tibial tendon problem, Boston’s team had a modest 36.3% accuracy in field goals.
Jayson Tatum scored fifteen points, but none in the second half; Jaylen Brown, a key man and considered a possible MVP of the series, He didn’t go over ten, just like Jrue Holiday. Dominican Al Horford scored three, with three rebounds and four assists.
