5 reasons the Boston Celtics will beat the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals
No. 3: Who will guard Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown?
Jayson Tatum & Jaylen Brown in their 2 games against the Mavericks this season:
— Justin Turpin (@JustinmTurpin) May 31, 2024
JT: 71 points on 52.5% shooting, 19 boards, 8 assists, +44
JB: 59 points on 57.1% shooting, 10 boards, 9 assists, +10 pic.twitter.com/DqLbb2skrK
The Boston Celtics have multiple solutions to combat the electric duo of Irving and Doncic, but I do not see anyone who can stop or contain the Jays. Tatum averaged 35 points in two games against the Mavs this season. One featured Derrick Jones Jr as the primary defender while the other featured PJ Washington, and neither caused a crinkle in his game. Brown averaged 29 points per game and got the better of much slower and exhausted Doncic during these outings and a mismatch against the shorter Kyrie.
Players like DJJ and PJ Washington have been outstanding defensively these playoffs but they have not faced the quality of wings that are the Jays. Without a definitive solution to Boston's top two scorers, this could be a quicker series than most anticipate. Both players have also increased their play as of late coming off their best series yet as a duo.