6 Reasons the Mavericks will make history and defeat Celtics in Finals

On Friday night, the Dallas Mavericks took a small step towards making history against the Boston Celtics as they defeated them 122-84 to avoid a sweep and force a Game 5.

No team has ever come back after being down 0-3, and seemingly the entire Mavs roster understands the exact position the team is in. Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic's strong belief in this team has rubbed off on those around them, and they are going to fight until the end.

Friday night's win doesn't guarantee a full comeback by any means, but it does make things harder on the Celtics in Game 5.

6 Reasons the Mavericks will make history and defeat Celtics in Finals

If the Celtics drop another game, the Mavericks will be coming back home with a chance to force a Game 7. Boston likely wants to avoid that at all costs, and a Mavs Game 5 win would make things extremely interesting.

Doncic must continue to stay even-keel with the way he treats officials as we saw in his spectacular Game 4 performance, and he has all of the support from Mavs fans as he tries to lead a historic comeback.

Coming back from a 0-3 series deficit to win the Finals will nearly be impossible, but there are some reasons to believe Dallas can do it.

Here are six reasons the Dallas Mavericks could make history against the Boston Celtics and come back from the 0-3 hole they were once in and win the NBA Finals.

6. Belief from Mavericks' leaders is at an all-time high

In the playoffs, teams lean on their leaders more than they ever have before. The playoffs reveal a team's true colors, and Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving have both stepped up as leaders in the playoffs.

Both of their growth as leaders is a big reason that the Mavs have made it this far, and the belief from Irving and Doncic is at an all-time high. Both players understand that it is going to be an uphill battle to take down the powerful Boston Celtics, but they also don't think it's impossible.

Doncic, in particular, has been one to instill belief into the fanbase even at the toughest times, and it has paid off for him in the past. Whether it's his "everybody act tough when they up" viral quote from the 2022 NBA Playoffs or him speaking confidently about Dallas' chances in every playoff series they've won so far, he continues to prove that he is built for this moment.

When your superstars believe you can make history, everyone else follows suit. As proven by this entire playoff run, the Mavs will go as far as Doncic and Irving take them, and their genuine belief that they can make history in this series could help Dallas continue to make things interesting and strike some fear into the Celtics' hearts.

5. Improved play of Mavericks role players

During the first three games of the 2024 NBA Finals, the Dallas Mavericks role players failed to show up. Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving failed to have much support from those around them outside of some good games from P.J. Washington, but that was a different case in Game 4.

The Mavs got out to an early lead, and the support that Doncic and Irving got from the players around them propelled them to that blowout win in Game 4.

Dante Exum was phenomenal in Game 4, and his hustle and energy on defense combined with his shot-making on offense made him tough to stop. Exum finally seemed to gain his confidence back after a rough stretch over the last couple of weeks, and he proved that Jason Kidd can trust him more in this series.

Tim Hardaway Jr. also had a huge bounce-back game that fans have been waiting for as he finished with 15 points while making five threes, and although the game was out of reach during his minutes, Hardaway Jr. gained some much-needed confidence as the series heads back to Boston for Game 5.

The Mavs continue to get the most out of Dereck Lively II as he dropped his second-straight double-double in Game 4, and his rim running, all-around defense, and energy have been huge for Dallas. He also showed off his range in Game 4 as he drilled his first 3-pointer of his career, and his belief in this team is at a respectable level, but he isn't getting too far ahead of himself.

He is taking things one game at a time, and his leadership as a rookie has been remarkable.

4. Mavericks’ buy in and belief in Jason Kidd is unbreakable

One of the most important parts of the NBA Playoffs is belief in your head coach and belief in what he is preaching. A strong bond and belief in the head coach can lead to the team making a deep playoff run like we’re seeing right now with the Dallas Mavericks, and a lack of belief can lead to a dumpster fire as we saw with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Cavaliers former head coach J.B. Bickerstaff lost the locker room, and they couldn’t even win a singular playoff series with him at the helm.

The Mavericks don’t have that problem with Jason Kidd, and his players’ belief in what he is preaching is always high. His players trust him, and Kidd is always the first one to defend his players. That isn’t always common with head coaches, and Kidd’s oneness with his team has helped the Mavs make it this far.

After the Game 4 win, Kyrie Irving showed love to Kidd and how he stood up for Luka Doncic amid all of the criticism about his defense, and a fully bought-in Mavericks team could make things tough on the Boston Celtics in Game 5.

No head coach is perfect, and Kidd’s excellence throughout these playoffs has been a major reason that they have performed so well over the last three months. If Kidd can have his defense playing like it was in Game 4 again in Game 5, watch out Boston.

3. Kyrie Irving is due for big games in Boston

During the first two games of the 2024 NBA Finals, Dallas Mavericks star guard Kyrie Irving couldn’t get things going. He was making uncharacteristic mistakes, didn’t look fully locked in, and was plainly letting Luka Doncic down.

Irving admitted to this, and it was clear that the hostile Boston Celtics crowd got to him. He was seemingly too worried about what they were saying, as he was seen talking trash with some fans and hyping up the crowd to be louder during “Kyrie sucks” chants.

Irving stirred the pot a little bit by saying he thought the crowd was going to be louder after Game 1, and it brought him even more boos in Game 2. He got his game back on track in Dallas for Games 3 and 4 as he was dominant in both games.

His slashing to the rim was elite, and he used his quickness to blowby Celtics defenders with ease. Many of the bunnies that Irving was missing around the rim in Games 1 and 2 started to go down in Games 3 and 4, and the Celtics couldn’t keep up with him.

After two great games in Dallas, Irving seems due for some big games in Boston. He finally got that first win against the Celtics since leaving under his belt, and now he has to get his first road win against Boson (since leaving them).

It’s not going to be easy, but a good Irving game in Boston could guarantee the Mavericks a Game 6 back in Dallas.

2. Mavericks have thrived with Kristaps Pozingis off the floor

In the first two games of the 2024 NBA Finals, Boston Celtics forward Kristaps Porzingis killed the Dallas Mavericks; especially in Game 1. Porrzingis seemingly couldn’t miss, and his rim protection helped the Celtics tremendously.

He was blocking everything at the rim, and the Mavs couldn’t get anything going around the bucket. Ever since Porzingis went down with a torn medial retinaculum in Game 2, the Mavs have been able to attack the rim much more effectively.

It has allowed them to resurrect their lob game with Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford, and Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving have been scoring much more at the rim. The Celtics are a completely different team when Porzingis is out, and if he misses Game 5, it could yield another result.

You never like to see a player go down with an injury, but Porzingis’ injury has considerably helped the Mavericks offense and defense. The Mavs aren’t particularly great at slowing down shooting big men, and although Al Horford can knock down open shots, he isn’t as dynamic of a shot-maker as Porzingis.

Porzingis can knock down threes from multiple feet behind the 3-point line or drain mid-range jumpers over a hand, and he was exposing the Mavericks defense when they would switch in the first two games.

If Porzingis plays in Game 5, which is definitely a big possibility, the Mavs have to find a way to slow him down. If not, the Mavs could have a heyday of buckets at the rim again.

1. Luka Doncic is the best player in this series

Despite Jaylen Brown’s dominance for the Boston Celtics in this series, Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic is the best player in this series, and it isn’t particularly close. Doncic let his emotions get the best of him with his constant whing to the referees in Game 3, but when Doncic isn’t complaining and is dialed in on defense like we saw in Game 4, the sky is the limit for him.

Doncic’s defense is contagious, and when his teammates see him giving his all on that end, it makes them want to do the same thing. You can’t judge Doncic’s defense in this series off of just one game, as he obviously struggled in the first three games, but him being the best player in this series could help the Mavs make history.

Having the best player in the series during the playoffs is important, and although it doesn’t mean everything, it does help at the end of games. Everyone looks to Doncic when things get tough, and if he can keep his emotions in check while giving effort on defense, the Mavs could end up making history.

The Mavs are nowhere close to making history just yet, but a win in Game 5 in Boston could change everything and massively shift the momentum in the Mavericks’ direction. They're going to need another big game from Doncic to turn this dream into a reality, and he is cut for the moment.

For all the latest on Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks throughout the remainder of the 2024 NBA Playoffs and beyond, stay tuned.