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With the much-maligned homecourt advantage with them, will the powerhouse Boston Celtics finish it off to finally win the 2024 NBA title? And secure their 18th title? Or will the Mavs, drawing special inspiration from their huge win today, be able to steal another game? And stage an epic comeback? What you got?
Game 2 is on Sunday at Boston’s TD Garden. Expect the Mavs to come better prepared, with defensive and offensive options with Porzingis in mind. Expect the Celtics to try to erase the stigma of their Game 2 meltdowns. Expect the Boston crowd to be noisy. This should be a game to behold. I still got the Mavs giving the Celts a good fight. Who you got? Be there or be square.
The Celtics are the prohibitive favorites in this series and have homecourt advantage. But the Mavericks have won seven of their nine road games during these playoffs, and their confidence has soared sky-high. The Celtics obtained the regular season honors, but the Mavs racked up the more difficult playoff-war medals. This should be a close one here. Who you got?
Overall, the key factors that will matter most in these last few games in the regular season will be: how the new players (Durant, Irving, Westbrook, etc) integrate into their new teams’ systems; how the injuries (Lebron, Durant, Zion, Towns, etc) affect their teams’ standings at the end of the season; and how other issues (Morant, Wiggins) pan out. We have here a long list of outstanding players. But do they fit in? Will they bring out the best out of the rest of the crew? Are they healthy enough – physically and mentally – for the rigors of the playoffs?
Kyrie is not an evil man. Kyrie has so much goodness in his heart. You see that in the number of social causes he has supported, such as the KAI Family Foundation. But the more he raises issues that he cannot support eloquently, the more he loses his credibility. He must learn to study his advocacies more closely, lest he embarrass himself and the people he claims he represents. He is a talented person. With a lot of followers in social media. He needs to understand that he has a responsibility to guide these people properly.
The team’s performance will depend on Kyrie’s status and its effect on team chemistry. If New York’s COVID mandate softens up, then Kyrie will be able to play full-time. But it doesn’t end there. How will his part-time play right now affect team chemistry? Who takes the alpha-dog role in the team? Unless they’re able to resolve these issues, then expect the Nets to be just another bystander watching the title fight from the sidelines.
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