The Celtics are on the brink of winning their 18th NBA championship, as they’re now up 3-0 in their best-of-seven finals series against the Mavericks.
Here at SBOTOP, we said that Dallas’ best chance of winning is in Game 3. However, they are now in danger of being swept after falling short.
Lakers fans must be sick at the sight of the Celtics having one hand on the Larry O’Brien trophy. Overall, it’s been a rough week for the Purple and Gold faithful because of their arduous coaching search and the passing of club legend Jerry West.
West, the inspiration behind the NBA’s logo, passed away peacefully at age 86 on Wednesday. He was one of the reasons why the league is what it is today.
Continue reading below for the latest recap of NBA 2024 updates.
Celtics reminded everyone of their clutch credentials
The Celtics are one win away from winning the title after the eked out a 106-99 win on Wednesday in a game that put basketball fans at the edge of their seats.
After trailing by 21 points with 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, the Mavericks clawed their way back into the game with a blistering 22-2 run in their last-ditch attempt to make this a competitive series.
However, just as they were about to complete a comeback, Luka Doncic fouled out after trying to draw a charge on Jaylen Brown with 4:12 left, and the Mavericks’ offence sputtered.
Dallas only made one field goal since then, and Boston capitalised via big shots from Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Derrick White.
Jayson Tatum, who struggled in the scoring department in the first two games of the Finals, finally broke through with a team-high 31 points, six rebounds, five rebounds, and four three-pointers, although he still went 11-of-26 from the field.
His co-star and reigning Eastern Conference Finals MVP Jaylen Brown, meanwhile, had 30 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists on 12-of-22 shooting, further boosting his NBA 2024 odds of winning Finals MVP. And Derrick White was the third double-digit scorer for the Celtics with 16 points.
The Mavericks got what they wanted offencively from their two stars, as Kyrie Irving went off for 35 points and Luka Doncic had 27 points, six rebounds, and six assists. However, key role players Derrick Jones Jr. and Daniel Gafford were anonymous in this game.
It didn’t help the Mavericks either that both Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving continue to be the team’s defencive liabilities.
As long as the Celtics continue to play as a team and don’t revert to their bad habits, which were on display when the Mavericks made a huge run in the final period in Game 3, they should sweep their way to Banner No. 18 on Friday.
Lakers miss out on top coaching target
The Lakers still haven’t found their head coach ahead of the 2024-25 season, as they were shunned by one of their top candidates.
Last week, it was reported that Dan Hurley was on top of the Lakers’ list, given he’s a back-to-back NCAA champion with the UConn Huskies. He was a target because of his ability to build a team and mentor young players.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Rob Pelinka and Jeanie Buss offered a six-year contract worth $70 million to Hurley, but the 51-year-old turned it down to stay at UConn and vie for a third consecutive national championship next season.
With Dan Hurley out of the picture, Los Angeles’ shortlist has been reduced to Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego and JJ Redick, who shares a good working relationship with LeBron James.
But besides the Lakers, Borrego is also a finalist for the head coaching vacancy in Cleveland.
Former Lakers coach returns to the Bucks
Speaking of Los Angeles, their former head coach, Darvin Ham, is reunited with his former employers ahead of the 2024-25 campaign.
The one-time NBA In-Season Tournament champion tactician is back with the Bucks to reprise his assistant role, this time under Doc Rivers, who replaced Adrian Griffin earlier this season.
The Lakers fired Ham this summer after a first-round exit in the NBA playoffs at the hands of the Nuggets. He compiled a 94-70 record in his two seasons in LA, which includes a trip to the Western Conference Finals last year. Before his stint in Los Angeles, Darvin Ham was part of Mike Budenholzer’s coaching staff from 2018 to 2021, where he won an NBA championship with the Bucks, their first since 1971.
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