The Boston Celtics are one win away from the 2024 NBA title. The Celtics withstood a frantic Dallas Mavericks comeback attempt in the fourth quarter of Wednesday night's Game 3 for a 106-99 win. The Celtics, up 3-0 in the best-of-seven series, can become the 10th team to ever sweep their opponent in the NBA Finals if they win Friday's Game 4.
The Celtics got 61 combined points from Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in Game 3. Boston, now 7-0 on the road in the 2024 playoffs, took control of the game in the third quarter, outscoring Dallas 35-19.
The Mavericks, with their season essentially on the line, nearly came all the way back in the fourth quarter. Dallas fell down by 21 points but went on a 22-2 run to cut the lead to one point. Luka Doncic, however, fouled out for the first time in his playoff career and the Mavericks couldn't get over the hump with their superstar on the bench.
Doncic finished with 27 points, while Kyrie Irving had his best game of these Finals with a game-high 35 points.
No team has ever come back from a 3-0 series deficit in NBA playoff history in 156 previous attempts. Only four teams in a 3-0 hole have ever forced a Game 7, including the Celtics in last year's Eastern Conference finals.
Here are some key takeaways from the game:
A game of wild swings
With their backs against the wall, the Mavericks came out swinging and almost immediately built a 13-point lead in the first quarter. But by the end of the frame, the Celtics had used a run of their own to slice the deficit down to just one point.
That's where it would remain heading into the break after an even second quarter. The third, however, was all Celtics. They put their offensive firepower and philosophy on full display with a dominant stretch that saw them shoot 13-of-20 from the field and make five 3-pointers. A few more 3s to start the fourth pushed their advantage to 21 points and suddenly all the talk was about a sweep.
And then, in the blink of an eye, the Mavericks ripped off a 10-0 run to cut the deficit to 11 points, and eventually got it down to one with 3:37 to play. They knocked down a few 3s, the role players started getting involved and their defensive intensity had the Celtics flustered. All told, the Mavericks outscored the Celtics 22-2 over a nearly eight-minute stretch in the fourth.
But as bad as the Celtics' offense was for much of the fourth quarter, it kicked into gear down the stretch. They had just two empty possessions over the final three minutes and outscored the Mavericks 13-7 the rest of the way. When they really needed baskets to save the game, they were able to get them.
Doncic fouls out in the fourth quarter
While the Celtics settled down in the final few minutes, a key reason they were able to hold off the Mavericks' comeback attempt is because Luka Doncic fouled out with 4:12 to play. He was trying to take a charge on Jaylen Brown in transition. The Mavericks challenged the call out of desperation, but it was upheld as a block and Doncic was disqualified.
With Doncic out of the game, the Mavericks had to run everything through Kyrie Irving, and the Celtics were able to key in on him over the final few possessions. Most notably, Irving tried to force a side-step 3-pointer over Al Horford in the final minute with the Mavericks down by four, but the veteran big man knew it was coming and got a strong contest.
This was not a vintage Doncic game. He finished with 27 points on 27 shots and added six rebounds and six assists. Still, he's one of the best offensive players alive and the Mavericks are a much different team without him. There's no guarantee they would have completed the historic comeback if he had been on the floor, but they certainly would have had a better chance.
To no surprise, Doncic was not happy with the officiating.
"We couldn't play physical, so... I don't wanna say nothing, but you know. 6 fouls in the NBA Finals... come on, man," Doncic said after the game.
Tatum and Brown make history
Jayson Tatum was not at his best in the first two games of the Finals. While he was rebounding and getting his teammates involved, he shot 12-of-38 from the field with nine turnovers. Jaylen Brown, meanwhile, was highly efficient but did not have a breakout scoring performance.
In Game 3 on Wednesday night, the Celtics' stars flipped a switch and put the team on their back. Tatum did most of his damage in the first half, while Brown picked up the slack in the second half. And after the Mavericks had cut the deficit to one point late in the fourth, those two scored eight of the Celtics' final 13 points the rest of the way.
All told, Tatum finished with 31 points, six rebounds and five assists, while Brown went for 30 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Together, they became the first Celtics duo with at least 30 points, five rebounds and five assists in a Finals game. As for Brown, he joined John Havlicek as the only Celtics player with a 30-point, eight-rebound, eight-assist outing in the Finals.
