NBA Finals,
Monday, 18 June, 2024
McCreadie Andias
Boston Celtics were crowned the 2023 /24 NBA champions for a record 18th time after blowing out the Dallas Mavericks 105-88 in game 5 at Boston on Monday.
In doing so, the Celtics passed their forever rivals, the Los Angeles Lakers, for the most titles in NBA history.
Star Player Jayson Tatum was behind 31 points, 8 rebounds and 11 assists from while MVP Jaylen Brown created 21 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists.
Brown earned his MVP award behind averages of 20.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5 assists across the five-game series, while also consistently guarding Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic.
Celtics build a 21-point lead at halftime with a second Payton Pritchard half-court heave of the series emphatically sending Boston into the break with a comfortable lead, and sending the sellout crowd at TD Garden into an absolute frenzy.
The Celtics went 16-3 during their playoff run, second only to the 2017 Warriors for best win percentage in a single postseason since all four playoff rounds became best-of-7 in 2003.
“It was a full team effort and I share this with my brothers and my partner in crime Jayson Tatum,” Brown said upon receiving the MVP award.
With the win, the Celtics finished the playoffs 16-3, second only to the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors (16-1) since the NBA went to four best-of-seven rounds of the playoffs in 2003 in what was an emphatic repudiation of Boston’s recent playoff disappointments.
The Celtics had largely controlled the first three games of this series before the Mavericks responded with an absolute demolition of Boston in Dallas Friday, winning by 38 points in the third-largest blowout in NBA Finals history, and the largest loss for the Celtics in any game since the 2017 Eastern Conference finals.
However, Celtics bounced back with one of its most stunning come backs of the season in Game 5 and, as a result, set a new standard for winning in NBA history.