Poll: Mavericks vs. Celtics Series Predictions

[scaryjerry]

Legs picked Dallas. Suddenly Luka is too much for us apparently.

Hopefully everyone picks Dallas.
Gotta say, how they dominated Minnesota in this close out game has me wondering

[trickybilly]

Who is Kyrie going to guard? 

White. Doncic probably takes Jrue

[keevsnick]

I'm going Celtics in 5, assuming KP plays.

The Mavs strength on defense is rim protection, but that matters a lot less against a team like Boston that can play 5 out all the time and pull centers from the basketball. The c's will work to get Irving and Doncic guarding Brown and Tatum then let those guys cook. The Mavs don't have the perimeter defenders to stop the Celtics getting in the paint. Unless Boston goes cold from three I expect they will score just fine on this team. OKC and Minnesota just didn't have the shooters to make Dalas pay for how they play defense.

On defense the Celtics match up pretty well with Irving and Doncic, and the Mavs have guys like Washington and Jones Jr who the Celtics Center can play well off from to help protect the rim making life. The C's will make those guys make shots. I imagine the defensive matchup will go something like:

Irving: Jrue
Doncic: Brown
Washington: KP
Jones Jr: White
Lively: Tatum

That lets the Celtics just switch the Luka/Lively pick and roll or a Luka/Irving pick and roll while having their two best help defenders on the Mavs streaky shooters for help. Dallas will need Washington and Jones jr to hit shots to open up their offense.

All in all i like this matchup for the C's. if the C's stay healthy and hit a reasonable number of threes I think they control this series. They just have more fundamental matchup advantages than the Celtics do. Doncic will get his, of that i have no doubt, but they won't slow down the C's enough to win 4 of 7. 

[Donoghus]

I don’t know if it’ll be 5 or 6 (I voted 5) but the Celtics are winning the title. No doubt in my mind.

Enjoy the next few weeks.  It’s gonna be special.  Especially for the younger crowd on here.

[mr. dee]

I'm going Celtics in 5, assuming KP plays.

The Mavs strength on defense is rim protection, but that matters a lot less against a team like Boston that can play 5 out all the time and pull centers from the basketball. The c's will work to get Irving and Doncic guarding Brown and Tatum then let those guys cook. The Mavs don't have the perimeter defenders to stop the Celtics getting in the paint. Unless Boston goes cold from three I expect they will score just fine on this team. OKC and Minnesota just didn't have the shooters to make Dalas pay for how they play defense.

On defense the Celtics match up pretty well with Irving and Doncic, and the Mavs have guys like Washington and Jones Jr who the Celtics Center can play well off from to help protect the rim making life. The C's will make those guys make shots. I imagine the defensive matchup will go something like:

Irving: Jrue
Doncic: Brown
Washington: KP
Jones Jr: White
Lively: Tatum

That lets the Celtics just switch the Luka/Lively pick and roll or a Luka/Irving pick and roll while having their two best help defenders on the Mavs streaky shooters for help. Dallas will need Washington and Jones jr to hit shots to open up their offense.

All in all i like this matchup for the C's. if the C's stay healthy and hit a reasonable number of threes I think they control this series. They just have more fundamental matchup advantages than the Celtics do. Doncic will get his, of that i have no doubt, but they won't slow down the C's enough to win 4 of 7.

Tatum was always switched to Washington the last time they played the Mavs and he was torching PJ.

[LilRip]

I’m going C’s in 5. I think the Wolves would’ve been a tougher match up for us so I’m glad for this series.

[Donoghus]

Obviously, Kyrie v. Celtics is gonna be the major storyline and the Luka/Zinger subplot is also there but those of us that went thru the emotion of the early 2000s, the idea of the Celtics beating Kidd can’t be underestimated.

[SparzWizard]

The opponents that the Mavs have played weren't push overs either. They beat the dysfunctional Clippers and a young OKC Thunder team. They also beat an overconfident Wolves team who defeated the defending champs the previous round.

All without home-court advantage. C's need to stay ready for them.

[mig3zwo]

although I'm a fan of both teams, I think the C's will win this. They are just solid this post season.
I think this will come down to foul trouble or/and injuries.

I just hope for some fun games.

[jpotter33]

Legs picked Dallas. Suddenly Luka is too much for us apparently.

I like Legs and think he's probably the best actual basketball mind in the national media today, but he's been as much of a bandwagon this postseason as any. I think he's legitimately jumped (in some order) from Celtics to Denver to Minny to now Dallas apparently. It's ridiculous, Perk-esque non-sense. Hell, just a week ago he was saying Minny would win it all, and now they're blown out at home in a game 5 with the Finals trip on the line.

The Celtics discourse this postseason is just the strangest I've ever seen.

[ozgod]

I'm expecting 4-2 but I wouldn't be surprised with 4-1 or 4-3. I think we have Dallas's measure, I think overall we have a better team than them but they have 2 guy that can go supernova no matter how well you defend them. If we play at our best and make our shots from 3 but defend well overall, even if one of Cryrie or Luka goes ballistic,  think we win 4-1. I don't think anyone can stop us if we're shooting 50% from 3 with the volume we are taking. Even if we don’t make our shots (because we don't always shoot 50% from 3) but defend well, restrict at least one of them as well as stop those easy lob dunks from Gafford and Lively, I’m guessing 4-2. But if we don’t defend well, and let those guys get going and their team grows in confidence then it might come down to clutch plays at the end and it could be anyone's series. As anyone who has followed along with the Celtics in the game threads this season, things don’t always go according to plan - we're an extremely optimistic fanbase outside actual game time, then during game time we turn into masters of insecurity at the first opposition run

I still think we are heavy favorites and deservedly so, there can be no excuses at all from our team if they take the Mavs lightly because “they’re only a 6 seed” or “they didn’t deserve to make it, we’ll wipe the floor with them.” Joes no.1 priority over timeouts and schemes and all thst technical stuff should be to get it in their heads thst Dallas deserve to be there and they shouldn’t be taken lightly. Because taking other teams lightly is this teams No1 issue, making games harder than they should be. If they come out focused and connected on the defensive end then they will be very hard to beat.

But we're 4 games away from Banner 18! I hope they are focused, locked in, don't take the Mavs lightly, and take care of business 

[ozgod]

We have the pieces to kick their ass in a short series.  Not sure I actually expect us to do it though.  We only bring our A effort in spurts when our backs are against the wall.  We got away with it against a young Indy team that couldn't execute in crunch time.  Doncic will have no such shortcoming, but hopefully we'll take him a lot more seriously than we did Nembhard.

Maybe we finally see that focus now that the finish line is this close.  Not sure.  I do think we'll win the series.  I just think it'll be a lot worse for the blood pressure than some of us might prefer.

My sentiments exactly...I expect us to win the series, but this team never makes it easy for themselves...I'm expecting a lot of folks reaching for another bottle of Jack (not a bad thing ) or another sedative pill or for their blood pressure pills during the game threads 

I can't wait for Game 1 - we'll see what their focus is like then.

[goCeltics]

If the c's play team ball can not see how they lose, hard for mavericks to hide Luka on defence unless Celtics let them by not moving the ball and over-dribbling. Luka on Holiday is a huge miss match. Luka on anyone on Celtics of the Celtics starters with Zinger healthy is a huge miss match. Irving is another miss match waiting to happen.

[Kernewek]

I voted six games - I'd love to see Kyrie & Luka play at their peaks for at least 1-2 games, so I'll allow them two wins.

Fun to see Kidd and Mazza putting the critiques to rest, though.

[cman88]

its kind of funny how Luca puts up 36pts, 10rebounds, 5 assists last night and the narrative is "how can celtics stop Luca!"

yet just last round tatum put up 36pts, 12rebounds, 6assists. and the narrative was "he didnt do enough, he should've scored 50!"

on the other end, who is going to stop tatum/brown? let alone our bevy of role players who can all erupt for 20-30 on a given night (looking at you Holiday/white/Porzingis/horford).

Porzingis/horford loom large in this series. as we will have 5 shooters on the floor at all times to drag gafford/liveley out the paint.