DALLAS — The Celtics will have to wait to exorcise those demons.
The Dallas Mavericks managed to fight off the Boston Celtics in Game 4 of the NBA Finals and avoid a sweep Friday with a 122-84 victory over Boston. It was Kyrie Irving's first win in 13 tries against his former team and the first career NBA Finals win for Luka Doncic.
Doncic led the Mavs with 29 points, five rebounds and five assists, going under on all three props thanks to only having to play 32 minutes.
The big X-factor for Dallas, however, was Dereck Lively. Lively hit a 3 to start the game and changed things with his ability to pass off the short roll. Dallas got 52 points from non-Irving, non-Doncic Mavericks in a much more balanced game, while the two superstars also shined.
The Celtics' offense completely fell apart, fumbling the ball out of bounds, failing to create any of the great looks they did in the first three games, and generally looking like the same team that has thrown up these disappointing performances so often despite their overall playoff success.
While only one team has blown a 3-1 lead in the Finals and no team has ever blown a 3-0 lead, this does present a little bit of doubt for a team that has had a few epic collapses in its time together.
Game 4 was the first time in these playoffs that Boston has lost after Game 2. The Celtics now have pressure on them to finish the series at home. Teams up 3-1 in Game 5 at home in the Finals are 5-3 straight up since 2003 (4-4 ATS).
With a championship in their sites, the Celtics chose the worst time for one of their signature awful shooting performances. Dallas held Boston to just 14-of-41 shooting from 3, including 5-of-19 in the first half when the game was competitive.
Without their usual 3-point advantage, the Celtics fell into the same trap the Thunder did against the Mavericks — they continually attacked the rim with multiple defenders. The Mavericks were sharper in trying to limit Boston's 3-point attempts than they were in the first three games, and Boston completely abandoned the extra passes that lead to better looks.
For Dallas, everything was easy and it got a more balanced set of contributions.
“They came out desperate and punched us in the mouth," Jrue Holiday said after the game. "We couldn’t recover the way we wanted to.”
This was a grand opportunity for Boston. The Mavericks are well aware that no team has ever come back from down 3-0 and had Boston hit them hard enough, it's very likely Dallas would have given up. But the Celtics let the Mavericks hit first, second and last and now have to live with the anxiety of what happens in a series that likely should have ended Friday night.
For Dallas, was this a huge turn? Did it find something that turned the series around?
It's difficult to argue that as much of the result was playing harder in front of a home crowd (though one filled with Boston fans who meekly filed out in the third quarter), and making shots while Boston played badly.
But the Celtics felt different, praising the Mavericks consistently for their effort and execution, with Al Horford saying the Celtics have to find adjustments for Game 5.
“These are the moments that can make you or break you," Jaylen Brown said. "We gotta reassemble"
Dallas fought back on all fronts, including the criticism of Doncic. Doncic was phenomenal in Game 4, not just offensively, scoring 29 on 10-of-18 shooting in 32 minutes, but also defensively. After the criticism of Doncic that many, including his coach, Jason Kidd called "unfair," Doncic responded with better on-ball defense, not allowing the Celtics to pick on him relentlessly in pick-and-roll situations.
When up against the most adversity, the best players respond, and that's what Doncic did in Game 4. He'll need to carry it through to Game 5 to force a Game 6 in Dallas and really give the Mavericks a chance to become the first team to come back from 0-3.
The Celtics opened as seven-point favorites for Game 5 in Boston on Monday.
