Photo Courtesy: Michael Kolch
By DaVince “Dino” Wright
What Happened in Game 2
The Dallas Mavericks got blasted by Boston in Game 2. Dallas fell behind when someone on the Celtics coaching staff thawed out Kristaps Porzingis and Derrick White who ended up scoring 12 and 18 respectively. It was Porzingis’ play on defense and in the paint that helped the Celtics take the lead at the half. Dallas fell behind and started launching 3-point shots like they were standbys at NASA! This always happen when the Mavericks fall into a trap by not playing tough defense in the paint. Second chance points and not rotating on defense would hurt any team especially one that’s on the road. The Mavericks got out-rebounded, shot poorly behind the 3-point line and struggled to match the energy of the Celtics bench. This recipe spelled disaster for the Mavericks and ultimately cost them the game. Dallas can’t give up 25 points in the first quarter nor can they fall back into bad habits. Game 3 will be huge for Dallas. They need to defend home court and make Game 4 meaningful for the franchise…
What to watch for:
Dallas will need to play their veterans more. Head coach Jason Kidd left Markieff Morris, Tim Hardaway Jr, Dwight Powell off of the active players list. Dallas is using players with no playoff experience and limited play this season. I shared 4 months ago that Dallas needed to go deep into their bench and now they can’t get a solid 15 points from these players! Here’s the gist of it, Dallas will have to win Game 3 just to have a realistic shot of being in this series, however they also have to win Game 4. Dallas beat Oklahoma City, Minnesota Timberwolves and the Los Angeles Clippers and each one of those teams (in my mind) are better than Boston. Dallas will need to play tough defense and allow Kyrie Irving to control the offense!
Players to watch:
Kyrie Irving will be the x-factor for the Mavericks in Game 3. Last game he scored 16 points, 2 rebounds and 6 assists in 41 minutes. That’s not the Kyrie that Dallas needs right now. Luka Doncic will need to play some solid defense in order for the Mavs to get a win. Granted he will score some points, but Dallas will need him to at least slow his man down. Derek Lively, Derrick Jones, Jr. and P.J. Washington combined for 30 points in Game 2. Dallas will need more from them Game 3. The bench will be key for the Mavericks. In other words, I’m saying that for the Mavs, it’s all-hands-on-deck if they are going to win moving forward. Boston is a good team, but not a great team.
Game 3
Boston Celtics vs Dallas Mavericks
Date: June 16
Time: 7:30 PM
TV: ABC
This game will be the game that Dallas shows the world just how good they are. Everyone is picking the Celtics to dismantle the Mavericks and take a 3-game lead at the end of the night and then will be going for the sweep in Game 4 in Dallas. This is where the water gets murky. Boston has a 56.3% chance of winning this game according to ESPN. Dallas will need to crash the boards and stop Jaylen Brown and the Celtics guards from shooting layups in the paint. I’m taking Dallas by 13! Dallas will need to hit their free throws!
Final Score: Celtics 96 – Mavericks 109
