Boston Celtics One Win Away from NBA Championship After Taking 3-0 Lead in Finals
After helping Boston avoid the biggest collapse in an NBA Finals game since at least 1997, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown exchanged long embraces.
With a 106-99 victory over the Mavericks on Wednesday night, the Celtics took a 3-0 lead and held off a furious Dallas rally. Tatum scored 31 points, Brown had 30, and the team advanced to the verge of a record 18th championship.
Brown finished with eight rebounds and eight assists as the Celtics won their tenth straight postseason game, extending their franchise record. With a win in Dallas on Friday, they can win the NBA Finals series and break a tie with the Lakers for the most NBA titles.
Furthermore, Boston can put the near-loss of a 21-point lead with 11 minutes remaining behind them.
Tatum stated, “I’m not really trying to look too much into it.”
“Runs are the essence of the basketball game. Nothing will ever work out the way you planned. Being resilient in those circumstances is essential for being a champion, and we proved it tonight.
With Kristaps Porzingis out due to a rare tendon injury in his lower left leg suffered in Game 2, Boston also improved to 10-1 in these playoffs without the Latvian.
It’s unclear how Porzingis will fare in the remaining games of the series, but it might not matter. Not one of the 156 teams that faced a 3-0 deficit in the NBA playoffs has come back to win the series.
It nearly took the Mavs an incredible comeback to escape the big hole. After a 20-5 run early in the fourth quarter, Boston led 91-70. With 3:30 left in the game, Dallas responded with a 22-2 run to pull within a point.
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