The Dallas Mavericks now find themselves down 2-0 in the 2024 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics, following a 105-98 loss on Sunday. While Celtics fans at the arena were jubilant after the game, Kyrie Irving let them know that the Mavericks will be back in Boston for Game 5.
Kyrie Irving was letting the Celtics fans know the Mavs will be back for Game 5 š
(via @kyriecenterig / TT)pic.twitter.com/cG1FriJMo3
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) June 10, 2024
I believe as well that we will get a Game 5 in this series. The question is whether the Mavericks would be facing elimination in that game. If Kyrie continues to play the way he has so far, they might well be.
Irving finished with 16 points, 2 rebounds, and 6 assists in this game and shot 7-18 from the field. The 32-year-old was being booed relentlessly all night and “Kyrie Sucks” chants broke out a fair few times during the contest as well. That was happening in Game 1 too and I think all that verbal abuse has affected the eight-time All-Star’s play on the court a fair bit.
For the series, Irving is now averaging just 14.0 points, 2.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. While the Celtics deserve credit for how they have defended against him, I think the crowd played a part in his struggles too.
We saw Irving make gestures toward Celtics fans in these two games, asking them to get louder with the boos and the chants. I think they got into his head a little bit and if we indeed get a Game 5 in this series, he would need to tune out all that noise and just focus on playing basketball. I know that’s a lot easier said than done, but that is what he would need to do.
Kyrie Irving Spoke On His Struggles In The Finals
To Kyrie’s credit, he wasn’t making any excuses for his poor play in this series. During his postgame press conference after Game 2, Irving opened up on his struggles in the Finals.
āA little disappointed in myself not being able to convert a lot more of the opportunities I have in the lane. Obviously, Iām going against Jrue Holiday and Jaylen Brown a few times but I feel like I have the upper edge on certain possessions, I just gotta convert.ā
Irving has gotten his fair share of good looks in this series, but the shots just aren’t going in as consistently as you’d expect. It certainly isn’t something that many would have foreseen, especially with how well he played in the lead-up to the Finals.
Irving shone against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals, averaging 27.0 points, 3.6 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 0.6 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game. He shredded that vaunted defense time and time again, but hasn’t been able to duplicate those heroics against the Celtics.
Perhaps some of those good looks will drop for Kyrie in Games 3 and 4 in Dallas, as he won’t be getting booed whenever he touches the ball. The Mavericks certainly would be hoping that proves to be the case.
If that does indeed happen, they could win both of those home games. We know that Luka Doncic is going to put on a show and all he needs to get his team over the line, is for his co-star to play up to his usual standards.
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