Celtics Pull Away in Second Half to Defeat Shorthanded Mavericks: “Nothing But Lessons to Take”

In the first rematch of the 2024 NBA Finals, the shorthanded Dallas Mavericks (24-22) fell 122-107 against the Boston Celtics (32-14) to open a two-game homestand. The matchup didn’t have nearly the same anticipation as the Mavericks continued to play without Luka Dončić (left calf strain). Dallas is now 5-12 since Dončić suffered the injury on Christmas Day amid a stretch marred by other injuries to rotation players.

The Mavericks also were without Dereck Lively II (right ankle stress fracture), Danté Exum (right wrist surgery), Naji Marshall (illness), and Dwight Powell (right hip strain) for the game against Boston. The situation worsened when Maxi Kleber suffered a right foot fracture, sidelining him without a clear timetable for his return. Dallas now only has Daniel Gafford available at the center position until Powell can return.

“It’s tough, but you gotta keep going—just one step at a time,” Gafford said. “You see him go down like that, you don’t know what’s going on with it. But other than that, it’s just next man up mentality, honestly.”

Kyrie Irving led the Mavericks with 22 points and five assists and joined them on the inactive list. Quentin Grimes chipped in 20 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Dallas also received 19 points, 15 rebounds, and three blocks from Daniel Gafford. P.J. Washington added 17 points, eight rebounds, and three assists. Jaden Hardy, returning from an ankle sprain, contributed 10 points.

Boston held Klay Thompson to six points on just four shot attempts in 26 minutes after returning from an ankle sprain. This trend continued the Mavericks’ struggle to generate quality shots for Thompson without Dončić on the court. Thompson was acquired to add shooting firepower after the Finals loss.

The Celtics, who were led by Jayson Tatum (24 points), Derrick White (23 points), and Jaylen Brown (22 points), bounced back from a 21-point loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday. White contributed 16 of his 23 points in the third quarter, helping the Celtics build a commanding lead.

Coming off a road victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Mavericks faced a tough challenge from the Celtics, who former Maverick Kristaps Porziņģis led. Porziņģis scored 18 points in his first game in Dallas since the February 2022 trade that sent him to Washington. Porziņģis had missed his four previous visits, including Games 3 and 4 of last year’s Finals, due to injury.

The massive disparity in perimeter shooting volume between these two teams proved to be a determining factor. Boston shot 20 of 52 (38.5%) from deep, while the Mavericks finished 8 of 22 (36.4%). Boston only turned the ball over five times, scoring 21 points off 13 Dallas turnovers.

“I like math because it has no emotions,” Irving said. “They’re No. 1 in three-point attempts, and last in points in the paint. That pretty much tells you what their game plan is going to be. Outside of [Jayson Tatum] and [Jaylen Brown], when other guys get it going like D. White, hitting some tough threes, and Jrue Holiday hitting tough ones, that’s what makes them special and great.”

After a strong start, the Mavericks could not keep pace with the Celtics, and the first half played out. Then, the game broke open in the second half.

Dallas Mavericks Start Strong, But Boston Celtics Begin to Heat Up

The Mavericks started strong, building an early 5-0 lead, with Spencer Dinwiddie hitting a pull-up three against Porziņģis and Irving attacking the paint for a floater. Dallas frequently played through Gafford on the elbow, trying to hit cutters. Boston struggled to shoot early but spaced out well, stressing the Mavericks’ defense, which often played off weaker shooters. Gafford spent time cross-matching against Jrue Holiday, while Washington guarded Porziņģis.

The Mavericks’ best stretch came when they built an early 13-4 lead. Dinwiddie took advantage of the Celtics, focusing on Thompson in a double-stagger play that led to a layup. Gafford continued the run with a putback after Washington missed a transition finish. This stretch was capped off by Irving taking a handoff from Gafford and then getting to mid-range for a pull-up jumper.

Washington exploited his size advantage, similar to his performance against Oklahoma City. He used a spin move for an and-one finish, giving Dallas a 16-6 lead. Part of the Mavericks’ early success involved Boston struggling to shoot, but the team had plenty of room to attack by spacing out and staying active with player movement. Dallas’ defense often relies on identifying a weak shooter and then pre-rotating to the paint. Gafford spent plenty of time cross-matching Holiday while Washington was responsible for guarding Porziņģis.

The Mavericks’ best stretch occurred early in the game when they built their lead to 13-4. Dinwiddie took advantage of the Celtics’ focus on Thompson being featured on a double stagger play, leading to a layup. Gafford continued the run by finishing a putback after Washington missed a transition finish in a crowd. Irving capped off this stretch by pulling up from mid-range off a handoff. Washington exploited his size advantage early, similar to how he’s done against Oklahoma City with Boston playing small. He used a spin move into a finish, drawing a foul. After the and-one for Washington, Dallas was up 16-6.

Kleber checked in for Gafford, so the Mavericks guarded straight up but switched everything. Tatum attacked the rim and scored initially, but Kleber provided some necessary rim protection in transition. Dallas was conceding mid-range attempts to protect the paint and reduce Boston’s shooting volume from beyond the arc. Brown took advantage with a pull-up, but the Celtics often got what they wanted.

Perhaps one of the most intriguing offensive sequences the Mavericks had involved Thompson staying active after faking a shot from three before getting it back on a handoff from Kleber. Thompson drilled the three, making it 18-10. Boston roared back, sparking momentum by crossmatching Porziņģis onto Washington and aggressively attacking the rim on the other end.

The Mavericks trusted Gafford to hold his own when switching as the game progressed, and he did well. He contained Brown in isolation and then ran the floor hard for a layup in transition. Boston became intentional about hunting smaller perimeter players with Brown down low, drawing a foul on Grimes. For much of the remainder of the first quarter, Boston deployed double digs, including Luke Kornet and Al Horford. This allowed Boston to hunt size mismatches even more, including posting up Horford against Grimes for an easy jump hook.

Tatum gave Boston the lead with a pull-up three, but Irving answered by attacking Horford for a baseline pull-up jumper. There was a sense that Irving would have to shoulder the load to keep Dallas in it, but the opponent was too talented. Boston made ground on Dallas after some empty offensive possessions before this sequence.

With the Mavericks living with Gafford switching, the Celtics began deploying a familiar strategy that hurt Dallas in the NBA Finals—bringing up another screener with shooting gravity. Gafford was eager for this challenge, even if he had to start on Holiday, then switch on Tatum and guard his yard. He handled it well.

“I feel like I’ve gotten better,” Gafford said. “Of course, there are a lot of things that I can really get better at, just like the one-on-one defense guard and guards in this league. Everybody is dynamic and everybody can drive to the basket, everybody knows how to shoot over a big like me. So that’s one of the things that I would say is a challenge for me to take that next step into just being better when it comes to defensively one-on-one for me.

“But just in general, I feel like we’re in the right spot when it comes to switching one through five, stuff like that,” Gafford continued. “I feel like we’re making progression in the right direction.”

At times, Boston was content with blitzing Irving to make the Mavericks play in the pocket while recovering after an initial 4-on-3. Dallas tends to adjust to this when Dončić isn’t available to play by having Irving become a screener in the two-man game to generate a mismatch. Dinwiddie used this to take a pull-up three and missed instead of getting the ball to Irving to make a play.

The Mavericks led 29-25 at the end of the first quarter after Gafford contained Tatum in isolation before running the floor in transition for a layup.

Boston Celtics Find Their Groove, Dallas Mavericks Struggle to Regain Control

Boston played two bigs again to open the second quarter, continuing to attack a wing. Horford used a couple of hard bumps, this time into Olivier-Maxence Prosper’s chest, before utilizing a hook. Tatum heated up with a pull-up three to put Boston ahead 30-29. Meanwhile, Dallas came up empty after relying on Prosper to make plays offensively but failing to do so on drives. This stretch became an 8-0 run for the Celtics, leading to a 33-29 advantage. Dallas never led again.

Washington ended the drought with 7:40 left in the second quarter by attacking Kornet off the dribble and then playing off two feet for a reverse finish. Irving checked back into the game with Dallas down 33-31. At this point, the Mavericks had a viable chance of regaining control of the game, but they could not.

Holiday sank a pull-up three as Boston tried to get into Stack pick-and-roll. Irving answered by attacking Holiday in isolation out of the corner for a finish at the rim. Holiday later got a stop as Irving took a post-turnaround jumper and missed. Dallas didn’t have much to turn to for advantage creation aside from relying on Irving.

Meanwhile, Boston’s perimeter shooting flurry continued with Porziņģis sinking a trailer three. Brown barreled down the lane for an emphatic dunk, giving Boston a 41-33 advantage, entering a timeout with 6:26 left before the break. Gafford cleaned up a missed three by Hardy as Irving connected with him after the Celtics showed early nail help. Holiday sank a contested corner three, growing Boston’s lead to 44-35. The perimeter shooting disparity began to set in.

White’s free throws made it a double-figure lead for the Celtics (46-35) with 4:45 remaining in the first half. Boston outscored Dallas 21-16 in the frame at this point. White sank a corner three to make it 49-35 on a second-chance look. The possession started with Boston using a counter to crossmatching, which involved bringing Gafford and Washington’s assignments to screen, but Washington was guarding utilizing the screen, causing a switch. Gafford’s man—a guard—cut through to the paint before flaring out to the corner, operating outside Gafford’s peripheral vision, leading to enough space for three.

Making matters worse, Irving attacked the paint for a floater and missed, leading to White found Porzingis for a cutting dunk early in the shot clock after pushing the ball. Getting a favorable rim attack against the Celtics’ defense is challenging enough, but having it turn into a fastbreak chance for the opposition after a miss is an example of how thin the margin for error is against them.

“In the first half, we had great looks at the rim that we just missed, which led to them scoring on the other end,” Kidd said. “If we made half of those layups, the game might have been a bit different. We need to capitalize on those opportunities.”

While Dinwiddie successfully attacked White for a scoop finish, this was a sluggish stretch offensively for the Mavericks, falling to capitalize on opportunities to score after failed Celtics offensive possessions. Boston came up empty on a Porziņģis post-up and even missed a second-chance three, but Thompson missed a wide-open shot from deep. Had a shot like this gone in, the Mavericks could have built momentum.

Porziņģis later flashed to the paint while having Dinwiddie switched onto him, drawing a foul while shooting over the top and converting. Boston was up 54-39 after he made the free throw. With the Mavericks switching often, Porziņģis was intentional about punishing Dallas for it by being physical before the catch.

Tatum ripped the ball from Washington on a post-up, but he caught it behind the three-point line and shot it—a needed clean look from deep that dropped through the net. After Washington’s three, Boston fired right back on the other end, with White finding Holiday for a clean look after pushing the ball. Washington did get to the free throw line by attacking the rim on the break and made both attempts, but the Celtics once again answered, with Brown getting into the paint for a pull-up jumper.

Thompson contained Brown in isolation, which resulted in him throwing the ball out of bounds. With 10.1 seconds left on the inbounds pass, Dallas had a final chance to score. Irving used the rebound to get to the baseline for a pull-up jumper and missed, but Gafford was active on the glass. Gafford pulled down the rebound and went back up with it, drawing a foul in the process. This gave Dallas an and-one with 0.4 seconds on the clock, making it a more manageable 59-49 going into halftime.

Derrick White’s Explosive Start Fuels Boston Celtics

After shooting twice in the first half, Thompson shot faked, then got a three-pointer in the corner that he made. He missed on his next attempt, but Dinwiddie dropped in a three of his own. Suddenly, Dallas was only down 59-54, becoming the team’s best effort in the second half before an avalanche from the Celtics.

White quieted this momentum with a three of his own in what ultimately became a 16-point period to help put the game out of reach. Irving was aggressive, attacking downhill before engaging Porziņģis in drop coverage, then using a retreat dribble for a short-range fallaway jumper. The Mavericks were having to work much harder for their scoring chances. Dallas failed to turn this into momentum, and White used an offensive rebound to finish. The Mavericks came up empty, and then White again got to the free-throw line for one by attacking the rim early and drawing a foul.

“He scored 16 points in the third quarter. I think he just got a rhythm, honestly,” Gafford said of White. “Every time he came down, he was shooting a three. Our main task is trying to get them to drive the basketball as much as we could.”

The Mavericks started playing through Gafford while having Irving and Thompson screen for each other. This led to Irving getting a Zoom action handoff to drive and finishing it with a finger roll. This was another sequence in which Thompson’s shooting gravity was used well, but the Celtics neutralized him by staying attached.

“The emphasis is on driving and trying to get into the paint. When you look at just 22 attempts for the game, that’s too low,” Irving said of the Mavericks’ three-point shooting volume. “We got some good looks and those 22 attempts, probably only two or three of them were forced. We got to the line, and they covered it pretty well, ran us off the line, and wanted the basketball to find a few players out on the perimeter.

“We just weren’t as active behind the three-point line,” Irving continued. “When you’re going against a team like this, where the number is a big difference, it’s going to show up. They just had to hit probably like one or two more threes in those attempts.”

White was left open for a three as the Mavericks deployed a zone, which backfired. After this shot, Boston was up 68-59. Dallas appeared to have a chance to use foul trouble to their advantage, but they failed. Porziņģis picked up a fourth foul with 8:04 left in the third quarter. Boston subbed him out, putting Kornet into the game instead of Horford.

This was a time when the Mavericks needed to go on a run. Instead, Kleber got the ball late in the shot clock, getting it ripped on a push crossover. White was leaking out fast in transition as this transpired, setting up a wide-open layup. Boston was ahead 70-59 with 7:41 left in the period. Dallas got a clean look for Kleber by having Thompson Ghost an inverted ball screen, but the shot was offline. Thompson created the shot by catching it on the move and passing out of the drive, but the lack of shotmaking from Dallas was too much to overcome.

Irving took advantage of Kornet being the big defender by having Kleber play pick-and-roll, then using his speed to punish Kornet as the big defender for a layup. Without Porziņģis or Horford on the court, the Celtics’ defense looked more vulnerable than it had in this game. Midway through the period, Boston led 77-61 after a strong stretch that began with Brown using a hostage dribble to get into the gap before making a floater, overwhelming the Mavericks’ on-ball defense. One deflating play included Boston using a stagger for White, and Dallas switched but didn’t get into the ball aggressively enough, giving plenty of room for White to take the three.

Making matters worse for Dallas, Dinwiddie, the Mavericks’ top secondary ball handler with Dončić out, picked up a fifth foul with 4:54 left in the third quarter. The Mavericks had to rely on Hardy, returning from a sprained ankle on a 15-minute restriction. Without enough offensive firepower, their outlook was bleak.

Brown drove by Washington and made a floater when he felt contact near the nail. While he made the tough floater, he missed the free throw. However, Boston had multiple offensive rebounds, which led to White making a floater. The Mavericks called a timeout, down 81-63 with 4:18 left in the third quarter.

The injury woes continued for the Mavericks. Kleber limped off the court as a timeout was called, and Gafford checked into the game. Kleber went to the locker room and was later ruled out with a fractured foot. He finished with one point, one rebound, and one assist across 11 minutes while missing each of his six shot attempts.

“It’s tough. I’ve never seen anything like it, and it’s not going to get any better,” Kidd said about the Mavericks’ injuries situation. “We’ll see.”

The Mavericks could not rally back, but they did not give up. After a slow first half, Grimes got going in the third quarter, scoring on a back cut and later making a mid-range pull-up. However, the perimeter shooting disparity continued to be too much to overcome, as Sam Hauser made a three to put Boston up 19. Once again, Dallas traded two for three—Gafford drew a foul in the paint and made both free throws and Pritchard responded with a three. Amid a string of empty offensive possessions for Dallas, Tatum drilled a three, followed by Hauser making one of his own—pushing Boston’s lead to a pivotal 25-point margin.

“They made adjustments, and that’s what great teams do, especially when they’re champions in the league,” Irving said. “They handled our pressure, adjusted to our zone coverage, started getting open shots, and once you start getting open looks and wide open ones, it becomes a pretty easy game from there,”

The Mavericks scored some points, including an Irving transition layup after a steal and a Grimes poster dunk. However, with Boston shooting so well from three, the Mavericks trailed 96-76 at the end of the third quarter.

Dallas Mavericks Fight Back, But Boston Celtics Hold Off Rally

Irving started the fourth quarter aggressively, pushing the ball in transition, leading to a layup for himself and another for Hardy on a reverse. Dallas was down 96-80 after stringing together some defensive stops. Porziņģis quieted the Mavericks’ push with a catch-and-shoot three. The combination of the Latvian big man being able to step out and shoot from three while also causing problems against mismatches in the paint was a challenging combination for the Mavericks to counter.

“It poses a threat for our fives, being able to bring the fives out on the perimeter, make them guard the perimeter, have them in rotations,” Irving said. “Joe Mazzulla is making some adjustments on the fly, and last year, their offense was about whale-hunting. They’re trying to get the matchup they want, make us get in rotation, and get open threes.”

Tatum made timely shots, including taking Washington off the dribble in isolation and using contact to set up a short-range fadeaway. Meanwhile, Irving did his best to keep the Mavericks in it but had to work hard again for his points. He commanded Porziņģis on a Veer switch deep on a drive, so he “Nash’d” through the lane by dribbling to the opposite block, stayed patient, and scored with a high-arching floater. Dallas’ patience continued to pay off for a bit. Washington attacked in transition a few times, once drawing a foul at the rim before making two free throws. He later found Hardy on the wing for a catch-and-shoot three—it was a 13-point game with 8:55 left.

Gafford blocked his second three-point shot of the night when guarding Tatum’s step-back attempt, but the Mavericks failed to secure the rebound. Needing to get a defensive stop, Porziņģis completed a putback, ending a potential Mavericks run. Hardy then missed a fadeaway mid-range jumper on the other end. Both teams had multiple empty possessions at a time when Dallas needed to leverage defensive stops for meaningful momentum swing.

Washington took Tatum off the dribble before making a reverse layup despite Porziņģis pressuring him on the other end. Brown’s mid-range jumper kept Dallas from cutting into the deficit. The Celtics sorely struggled offensively for a stretch. Still, it wasn’t until Grimes used a hesitation dribble, setting up a foul-drawing finish in transition, that Dallas came closer than 15 again.

The Celtics’ shooting drought ended, with Holiday sinking a catch-and-shoot three to keep Boston ahead by 16. With the sense time was running out, Dallas aggressively pressured the ball and even forced a turnover with Tatum dribbling off his foot, but the Maverick faced a steep uphill battle down the stretch. Regardless, Irving snaked into the gap before finding Grimes for a catch-and-shoot three from the wing. At this stage, the Mavericks were down by 13.

The game ultimately unraveled when Dinwiddie fouled out after a battle with Porziņģis before a post-entry pass. Dinwiddie emphatically voiced his displeasure with the officiating crew and was called for a technical foul. Tatum made the free throw, essentially deflating the Mavericks’ momentum.

Grimes cleaned up a missed free throw by Gafford, who split a pair of attempts to make it an 11-point game, but there was only 3:44 left. Holiday answered with a step-back three against Gafford. There was no rallying back for Dallas at this stage. Boston continually fired back with a scoring possession each time the Mavericks put points on the board to protect a sizeable lead as they closed the game.

Looking Ahead

The Mavericks will play the Washington Wizards on Monday, wrapping up a two-game homestand. This is the final home game before embarking on a season-long five-game road trip, which ends with a rematch against the Celtics on Feb. 6.

“We just have to be ready to listen to what our game plan is and also make adjustments as players when we see them again on February 6,” Irving said about rematching against the Celtics soon.

After an exhilarating 121-115 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder in their previous game, Irving encourages the Mavericks to reflect and learn from both games as they continue to build.

“They had the game in control, but for us, we just got to look in the mirror and see how we can get better after this,” Irving said. “Going against the best of the best, you have nothing but lessons to take from both of those games.”

With Dončić expected to be sidelined likely until the Mavericks return home from their upcoming road trip, continuing to tread water will be essential. However, the frontcourt has taken so many injury hits lately that it’s become difficult to envision some action not being taken. Powell doesn’t have a long-term injury, but even upon his return, Dallas would only have one other center besides Gafford.