Brown has 22. Porzingis returns with 20 points as Celtics start NBA Finals with 107-89 win against Mavericks

The Associated Press – 5 minutes 07/06/2024

BOSTON (AP) — Jaylen Brown scored 22 points, Kristaps Porzingis added 20 in his first game in more than a month and the Boston Celtics powered past the Dallas Mavericks 107-89 on Thursday night in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

Derrick White finished with 15 points for Boston who was ahead by 29 points in the opening half. Boston made 16 3-pointers in a rousing beginning to its pursuit of the 18. NBA title.

Porzingis who was off since the 29th of April with the calf strain in his right leg The player was able to come off the bench and immediately ignited the game with six rebounds and three blocks over the course of 21 minutes. Six Celtics scored double figures.

Dallas reduced the deficit to 8 points in the third quarter However, Boston quickly regained the lead.

Luka Doncic led Dallas with 30 points in the game. P.J. Washington scored 14 points and eight rebounded. However, Dallas was unable to find offensive consistency beyond that, registering just nine assists on 35 field goals in the game.

The former Celtic Kyrie Irving had a tough time throughout the game, netting 12 points. Kyrie Irving was greeted with an extended and loud cheer of boos when his name was announced prior to the game. The boos continued throughout the game every time he played the ball.

The reprimand was imposed following an incident in which Irving had a heated exchange in a heated debate with Boston fanatics and had to pay a penalty for making an inappropriate gesture during a game at TD Garden.

The Celtics looking for their first title since 2008, showed no fatigue from their 10 day layoff after beating in the finals against Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals.

They were ablaze with energy all through playing the ball together in the halfcourt, and distributing players to the basketball to open 3s. They also took on the inside and the interior Dallas defense and made it to the rim for a few dunks.

Apart from Doncic who sank 12 of 26 shots from the field, Dallas struggled early to start its routines and didn’t seem to achieve a consistent rhythm offensively.

The Mavericks were ahead by one point halfway through the opening quarter. The Celtics took advantage of their lead by scoring 44-16, making it 58-29 at the end of the second quarter.

The situation changed in the following 12 minutes of action during which Dallas utilized a 35-14 run which included 15 points from Doncic, to reduce the lead of Boston to 72-64. However, Boston finished the third quarter on an 8-2 run to bring it back to 86-66 by the start of the fourth.

Dallas only had five assists in the opening three quarters of play, the lowest number any NBA team has had at any time, in 36 minutes of play in the last three seasons.

Porzingis was able to end his 10-game suspension by stepping off the bench at 7:17 remaining in the opening quarter, replacing the starting Al Horford. Except for the white compression sleeve that was for his left leg it was difficult to discern Porzingis was recovering from an injury.

He was in the game quickly, netting two free throws following a foul by Doncic. After a few minutes after, the Latvian scored his debut field goal as He threw down a sharp jumper that he smashed over Doncic.

He didn’t want to be done.

After a few minutes, he slipped free in the air and scored the two-handed dunk on Derrick Lively. On Dallas the next play, Porzingis was there to block Jaden Hardy’s layup. The Celtics moved the ball across the court before transferring them back the ball to their big player who was able to bury a shot from 16 feet.

The game was powered by a surge of 17-5 by Boston in the last 5:24 of the quarter. The game was able to see Porzingis score 4-5 on the floor, scoring 11 points as well as block two shots and pick up three rebound. Boston had a lead of 37-20 in the 2nd quarter.

Porzingis completed the second half with 18 points, completing 7-of-9 shooting.