Top 5 things that Dallas Mavericks did wrong in Game 1 loss to Boston Celtics
The Dallas Mavericks were handed a rude awakening by the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals on Thursday. The Mavericks were blown away at TD Garden as the Celtics registered a dominant, 107-89 win and secured a 1-0 lead in the finals.
Dallas trailed Boston by 21 points at halftime and the home team, led by comeback man Kristaps Porzingis, got off the blocks with great energy.
Luka Doncic led the Mavericks' mini-comeback in the third quarter as the visitors cut the deficit to just eight points. From there on, the Boston Celtics picked up the slack and shut the door on any possibility of the Mavs staging a comeback.
Luka Doncic dropped a 30-point double-double in his first-ever NBA Finals game. Yet, the Dallas Mavericks came nowhere close to winning in Boston. So what exactly went wrong? Well, a lot of things.
Here's a closer look at the top five things the Dallas Mavericks did wrong during their confidence-shattering defeat against the Boston Celtics in Game 1.
Top 5 Dallas Mavericks mistakes in Games 1 of NBA Finals
#1. Lack of assists
The most glaring part about the Dallas Mavericks' struggles in Game 1 was the shortcomings in play-making. Mavericks only had 9 assists on the night on 35 made field goals. The lack of ball distribution and more emphasis on isolation plays adversely impacted the Mavericks. Notably, Boston had as many blocks as the Mavericks had assists on the night.
In the playoffs, the Mavericks were averaging 22.4 assists per game leading up to the finals. The number dropped considerably against Boston in Game 1. Doncic, who is their primary orchestrator, had a playoff career-low of one assist in the game. Leading up to Thursday's matchup, Doncic was averaging 8.8 assists per game in the playoffs.
The Mavericks' struggles in play-making were compounded because of the Celtics' stupendous defensive scheme. The home team didn't double-team either Doncic or Kyrie Irving as the duo has been throughout the playoffs. It directly led to the two Mavericks superstars scoring rather than creating for their teammates.
#2. Off-night from 3-point range
Dallas struggled immensely when it came to shooting the ball, particularly from 3-point range. The Mavs made just seven 3-pointers in Game 1 of 27 attempts, shooting an abysmal 25.9% from deep. Out of the seven made 3s, four of them were knocked down by Doncic.
Leading up to Game 1, the Western Conference champions were shooting 37.2% from beyond the arc and averaging 12.6 made 3s per game in the playoffs.
Mavericks were -27 in the 3-point category alone as Boston shot lights out, converting 16-of-42 attempts from downtown.
#3. Role players come up small on the big stage
Luka Doncic dropped 30 points while Kyrie Irving had 12 points. P.J. Washington was decent on the night as he added 14 points. But the rest of the Mavericks players struggled from the field and failed to provide the scoring impetus.
The role players tend to struggle on the road, and the Dallas Mavericks supporting cast around Doncic and Irving only solidified the common belief.
Mavericks had 20 points off the bench, which was matched by Boston's sixth player Kristaps Porzingis alone. The Mavericks were -12 in points off the bench and the majority of their 20 bench points came in the last five minutes of the game when both team's starting lineups were taken out.
As the role players failed to elevate their game, it directly impacted the game of Doncic and Irving. The Mavericks' superstar duo stuck to more isolation plays, looking to score themselves and stopped trusting the pass.
#4. Abysmal shooting from the charity stripe
On the road in a high-pressure finals game, a team's best bet to score easy points is from the free throw line. The Dallas Mavericks, however, struggled to convert their free throws on the night.
As a team, the Mavs shot 63.9% from the free throw line, converting only 12-of-19 attempts from the charity strip. Being -27 from 3-point range and then shooting abysmal from the free throw line is a recipe for disaster. The Dallas Mavericks found that out the hard way in Game 1 of the finals.
Leading up to Game 1, the Mavericks were shooting 72.8% from the free throw line on 23.8 attempts. But their free throw percentage and the number of attempts both saw a major dip in Game 1.
#5. Kyrie Irving struggles in hostile setting
All eyes were glued on Kyrie Irving as he returned to Boston for Game 1. The Mavericks superstar was jeered and booed by the Celtics fanbase inside TD Garden.
Under the hostile environment, Kyrie Irving struggled to get himself going on the offensive end. Irving not playing well, especially on the road, was one of the primary reasons behind the Mavericks getting whooped in Game 1.
Irving shot 6-of-19 from the field and scored just 12 points. He shot a below-par 31.6% from the field. Irving also struggled from 3-point range and couldn't knock down open jumpers.
Irving went 0-of-5 on the night from beyond the arc. The nifty ball handler only had two assists to show for as well.
Doncic, Irving and Co. will look to tie up the series in Game 2 on Sunday before heading home for Games 3 and 4.