The Boston Celtics have taken Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks Thursday night, 107-89, to start the championship series with a bang as they get a dominating win on their home floor. It was led by Celtics star Jaylen Brown who spoke after the game about the victory, but also about the improvements the team needs to make in Game 2 surrounding Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic.

Brown talks Celtics being “lucky a few times” against Doncic, Mavericks

Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) controls the ball against Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) in the third quarter during game one of the 2024 NBA Finals at TD Garden.
David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Brown was exceptional on both ends of the floor as besides scoring 22 points, he also had six rebounds, three steals, and three blocks in the game. Doncic on the other hand had 30 points shooting 12 of 26 attempts from the field to go along with 10 rebounds as the Boston star said they “got lucky a few times” in reference to Doncic and Dallas Thursday night.

“It was a full team effort and you know Luka Doncic still had 30 and 10, so we gotta do a better job,” Brown said via a video by ClutchPoints' Celtics reporter Daniel Donabedian. “But you know, it's a full team effort. Tonight we got lucky a few times, but we got to get ready for Game 2.”

Boston guard Jrue Holiday had a solid game as well with 12 points, eight rebounds, and five assists where it was more so on the defensive end in guarding Kyrie Irving where he held him to just 12 points. Holiday would say to the NBC Celtics broadcast after the game that they were antsy to have a intense performance since they have been on break for so long.

“We came out with intensity, we had a really long break so really just really anxious to get out here and play,” Holiday said. “I think defensively we did the job well and started off really fast and aggressive on offense.”

Celtics “staying poised,” limiting Dallas to low number of assists

A huge feat accomplished by the Celtics in defending the Mavericks Thursday was the lack of assists as Dallas finished with nine in the whole game. While Doncic is known for his play-making ability, he only had one the entire night, a statistic that resulted in Boston “staying poised,” even if Holiday questioned if “they just had an off game.”

“Staying poised. JB [Brown] telling us to stay poised, Al [Horford] telling us to stay poised because we know that runs happen in this game, 20 points is nothing. So we stood the punch and got it back up to 20,” Holiday said which led to the topic of the low assist totals. “Tough to do, Maybe they just had an off game or something but we gotta come with the same intensity we did last time, try to close out the three-point shooting and keep them at the free throw line.”

Jaylen Brown, Joe Mazzulla talks Dallas going on big run

While the Celtics dominated most of the game, there was a point where the Mavericks were starting to make a run as at one point, they dwindled down a 29-point deficit to just eight towards the end of the third quarter. Boston head coach Joe Mazzulla would play it down saying that because of how explosive Dallas is, they are “gonna make runs,” but it is up to them to build “awareness” and adapt.

“It's the NBA Finals, you're playing against a great team, they're gonna make runs. Just building awareness to why the run was made and you know, that team does a great job in making defensive adjustments on the fly,” Mazzulla said per a video by Donabedian. “And sometimes it takes us a possession or two to recognize that and so just understanding the run, what could we to change it, and how could we just get better. So I thought the guys' poise out of the timeout was big and that is going to happen. They're going to go on more runs and we're going to have to fight through them.”

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For Brown, the run by Dallas is “when the game started” according to The Athletic:

“When they cut (the lead) to eight, that’s when the game started,” Brown said. “I liked how our team responded. We stayed composed. Offensively, we got to our spacing and were able to push that lead back out and make some plays on offense. That was a big third quarter. We just said, just breathe. The game is starting now. Just breathe, this is a moment where our experience shines through. Just breathe, just keep playing basketball.”

Jayson Tatum knew Brown could have great performance

Brown was always going to be a vital player in this series, but it was put on display Thursday as the Mavericks were trying everything in their power to hold down arguably the Celtics' best player in Jayson Tatum. They succeeded for the most part as he only finished with 16 points, albeit with 11 rebounds and five assists, but Brown stepped up big time as Tatum knew he would.

“I think just, being his teammate for seven years, we’ve been in so many big games, we’ve been in so many big moments,” Tatum said. “And (he’s) just always being there to answer the call in those moments, especially on both ends of the floor.”

He was a jack of all trades type of a player as Mazzulla even said after the game that the 27-year old star had a challenge for himself going into the championship series.

“What you saw tonight is kind of the challenge he took for himself coming into the year,” Mazzulla said of Brown. “Not wanting to be defined by one thing. Wanting to make plays. Wanting to be a well-rounded player and get better and better.”

Brown emphasizes that the job is not done for the Celtics

However, the job is not done for the Celtics as it is only just Game 1 of the series and there is no doubt the Mavericks will come back harder next game. This was a sentiment that was echoed by Brown during his media availability post-game.

“It’s not going to be perfect. It’s a long series,” Brown said. “I expect them, Game 2, to come out with tremendous force and maybe try to hit us in the mouth. So that’s the game. When a team goes on a run, you got to manage it, you got to stay composed and you got to keep playing basketball.”

Boston is on the quest to hang up their 18th championship banner inside the TD Garden as they are currently 1-0 in the NBA Finals. Game 2 will take place on Sunday night as Dallas looks to tie the series up going into their home floor.