NBA Finals: Celtics defeat Mavericks for record-setting 18th championship
The Celtics are back on top.
The Celtics are back on top.
Boston defeated the Dallas Mavericks 106-88 at TD Garden Arena on Monday to win the 2024 NBA title in five games. The result marked Boston’s 18th championship, breaking a tie with the Los Angeles Lakers for the most in league history.
Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 31 points, 11 assists and 8 rebounds. Jaylen Brown — named NBA Finals MVP — added 21 points and 8 rebounds.
“Bill Russell would be so proud,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said of Brown before handing him the trophy named after the late Celtics great. Luka Doncic led the Mavericks in defeat with 28 points and 12 rebounds.
"We knew we needed each other," Tatum said of his teammates after the win. "It's a team sport, and we went through the ups and downs. We deserved this. We earned this."Boston claimed the Larry O’Brien Trophy thanks to one of the greatest offenses in NBA history. The Celtics — who boasted the NBA’s best regular-season record at 64-18 — ranked No. 1 in the league with a 122.2 offensive rating. They were second in points per game (120.6) and rebounds per game (46.3), and they hit the most 3-pointers per game (16.5) of any team.
Rating: 5