ben rohrbach · vincent goodwill · jake fischer
The Dallas Mavericks could take a breath after they avoided a sweep with a dominant 122-84 win over the Boston Celtics on Friday night in Game 4, but their uphill battle continues with their season on the line in Game 5 on Monday night.
With the series back in Boston, the Celtics will aim to close out the Mavs and secure their 18th championship in franchise history.
How to watch Mavericks vs. Celtics Game 5
Date: Monday, June 17
Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
TV channel: ABC
Streaming: DirecTV Stream, Fubo, YouTube TV
Follow along with Yahoo Sports NBA experts Jake Fischer, Vincent Goodwill and Ben Rohrbach for Game 5 of the NBA Finals.
Live21 updates
Vincent Goodwill
Boston looks like it wants it too badly, if there’s such a thing. The energy leads to trying too hard. And sooner than later you’ll have to play off more than emotion. Still Boston is up 9-2.
Jake Fischer
Much of Dallas' Game 4 win was Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving both having terrific games, but also the "others" connecting from deep and scoring with relative ease. The Mavs are 0-of-5 from distance to start this game, with Derrick Jones Jr. missing a wide-open corner three off a ridiculous over-the-head find from Luka.
Vincent Goodwill
And ... we get the first "Kyrie sucks!" chant of the night — a loud one — during a jump ball.
It feels a little like a Game 7 to open this one. Nobody can hit a shot beyond the restricted area — until Al Horford drains a 3 to put the Celtics up 9-2 at the 7:26 mark. The 3 forces an early Dallas timeout.
Vincent Goodwill
Surviving the early run is gonna be critical. Every time Boston hits a couple shots, this place will explode
Jake Fischer
For those who care about such things ... this is the first time Boston is wearing green all series.
Ben Rohrbach
See AlsoCeltics vs. Mavericks NBA Finals Game 5: Live updates, highlightsBoston Celtics vs Dallas Mavericks LIVE: Updates, score, news, stats, highlights for NBA Finals Game 5Boston Celtics vs Dallas Mavericks NBA Finals Game 3: Celtics win 106-99, stats, highlights, and analysisCeltics vs. Mavericks score: Boston grabs 3-0 NBA Finals lead after withstanding frantic Mavs comeback attemptOn the opening possession, Jayson Tatum finds Jrue Holiday on a slip screen for a layup. The Celtics attempted just nine shots from the paint in their Game 4 blowout loss. The bucket draws a deafening roar from the crowd.
Vincent Goodwill
The booing for Public Enemy No. 1, 2 and 3 — Kyrie Irving — is palpable. They’ll never forgive.
Jake Fischer
This crowd is definitely fired up ... for nobody more than Kristaps Porzingis. The injured center was the last Boston player to take the court for pregame warmups just before tipoff, and TD Garden gave him a raucous ovation.
Yahoo Sports Staff
Dereck Lively woke up the Boston crowd 💀
— Ball Don’t Lie (@Balldontlie) June 18, 2024
Yahoo Sports Staff
Kyrie working on the full layup package before Game 5 🏀 #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/b8YwKTsjEt
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 17, 2024
Yahoo Sports Staff
Will Jayson Tatum become an NBA Champion tonight? 👀 pic.twitter.com/ZyfhwwI17X
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 17, 2024
Vincent Goodwill
Kyrie Irving respectfully calls Celtics a cult, but playing in Boston is certainly a different vibe
The Celtics' playoff slogan, “Different here,” smacks of arrogance and reeks of Northeastern elitism, until one walks into the TD Garden and looks up.
All the championship banners and retired numbers, they let new players — 19-year-old rookies or veterans alike — know of the immense expectations.
Some franchises hang division banners, most would hang conference championship banners. The Los Angeles Lakers, who are tied with the Celtics for NBA titles at 17, hung an in-season tournament banner this season.
Try that with Red Auerbach’s Celtics — a puff of cigar smoke would’ve flown in from the top of the Garden to prevent that from happening. Famously, this franchise hangs only championship banners.
The New York Knicks have become rekindled on the national scene, with Madison Square Garden as the visual backdrop, and the Lakers are always on the "A" block of sports television shows, but within their respective city, the Celtics can’t escape what they mean to Boston.
Kyrie Irving, in the most affectionate, respectful way, called it a cult. Not in the Jim Jones kind of way, but in regard to the pressure and the expectations being real, with full buy-in.
Read the full story here.
Yahoo Sports Staff
Casual make on the first try ahead of Game 5 from Luka ✨
Tipoff is at 8:30pm/et on ABC 🍿 pic.twitter.com/eINCa9OMJB
— NBA (@NBA) June 17, 2024
Yahoo Sports Staff
"No matter what the score is... we understand we have one thing to do and that's just to have one more point than the Celtics tonight." 💪@Dennis3DScott with HC Jason Kidd ahead of Game 5 pic.twitter.com/9CkXu9VClY
— NBA TV (@NBATV) June 17, 2024
Yahoo Sports Staff
"Expect to see [Porzingis] tonight," per Joe Mazzulla.
He will not be on a minutes restriction.
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 17, 2024
Yahoo Sports Staff
The Jays locked in for Game 5 🏆 pic.twitter.com/Yx6evr3fdn
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 17, 2024
Dan Devine
How concerned should Celtics be about their Game 4 performance?
The Celtics entered Friday with an opportunity to become NBA champions in large part because of the metronomic consistency of their approach and execution. A ton of the credit for that belongs to head coach Joe Mazzulla, whose unflinching — and, at times, eyebrow-raising — commitment to a process-over-results, sweat-the-small-stuff style has helped transform Boston from a talented team given to occasional lapses into one that has functioned, for most of the past eight months, like a brutally efficient winning machine.
As Mazzulla told reporters before Game 4, though, a healthy share of the credit should also go to the team his Celtics had the chance to sweep.
“Dallas is a great opponent, because they test your discipline — like, every single possession,” he said during his pregame news conference. “And the second that you're not where you're supposed to be, or you don't execute your angles properly, they take advantage of it.”
More often than not on Friday night, the Celtics weren’t where they were supposed to be, and didn’t execute their angles properly. And man, did Luka Dončić, Kyrie Irving and the rest of the Mavericks take advantage of it.
Read the full story here.
The Mavs' star duo combine for 50 points to force Game 5 back in Boston 🤩🤩
Luka: 29 PTS, 5 REB, 5 AST, 3 STL
Kyrie: 21 PTS, 4 REB, 6 ASTGame 5: Monday, 8:30pm/et, ABC pic.twitter.com/3R7DaFrGrq
— NBA (@NBA) June 15, 2024
Liz Roscher
Kristaps Porzingis available for Boston Celtics in Game 5
The Boston Celtics announced Kristaps Porzingis is good to go for Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks after missing Games 3 and 4 with a left leg injury.
The 7-2 Latvian originally sustained a posterior tibialis dislocation in his left leg during the Celtics' Game 2 win over the Mavs when he collided with Dallas center Derek Lively II in the third quarter. He came up limping and didn't look right for the rest of the game.
The Celtics announce that Kristaps Porzingis will be available for Game 5. pic.twitter.com/BzEzcG6DXv
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 17, 2024
Porzingis missed Game 3, but was active for Game 4 — though "active" might be a strong word for it. Head coach Joe Mazzulla said before Boston's Game 4 loss that Porzingis was “not quite there" in terms of starting, but available to play in "very specific instances if necessary."
No one (but Mazzulla, presumably) knows what those instances are, but none of them occurred in Game 4 as the Celtics got blown out by the Mavericks 122-84. The championship wasn't on the line, and Porzingis subsequently didn't see any playing time.
Despite the loss, resting Porzingis helped him be ready for the Celtics' golden opportunity on Monday night. They've got a 3-1 lead and they're playing the Mavericks in Boston. They need just one more win to bring that trophy home, and Mazzulla's got all hands on deck to make it happen.
Yahoo Sports Staff
Kristaps Porzingis getting shots up before Game 5 👀
Do the Celtics close it out if he plays tonight?
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 17, 2024
Ben Rohrbach
If the Celtics win Game 5, they will finally be champions. If the Mavs win ...
No NBA team has come back from a 3-0 deficit in the playoffs. They are 0-156. Thirteen of the 287 teams (4.5%) that trailed 3-1 have won the series. And 57 of the 350 teams (16.3%) that trailed 3-2 have won.
This is the widening window of opportunity the Boston Celtics are attempting to avoid in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. With a victory on Monday night, the Dallas Mavericks should feel four times as confident about their shot at the title, since they will no longer need to think as the only team attempting to rally from a 3-0 deficit. They will merely need to become the 58th team to win consecutive elimination games.
"They are a desperate team, and they are playing probably a little freer," said Al Horford, whose Celtics trailed the 2023 Eastern Conference finals 3-0 and forced a Game 7. "We know what that mindset is like."
There is a freedom in knowing there is no room for error. The Mavericks have little other choice but to give it their all on every possession because one mistake could mean the end of all championship hope.
Read the full story here.
