Dallas, TX
Stats Rundown: 6 numbers to know from the Mavericks’ 122-84 Game 4 win over the Celtics
Breathe a sigh of relief, Dallas. Your Mavericks will not be swept in these 2024 NBA Finals after Friday’s 122-84 thrashing of the Boston Celtics in Game 4 at American Airlines Center.
The Mavs finally played the inspired brand of basketball on both ends of the court in the one-sided Game 4 affair that helped them conquer the Western Conference on this playoff run. And it didn’t hurt that, at the same time, the Celtics couldn’t hit the broad side of a big ole’ barn when they had the ball.
Even if all the Game 4 win accomplishes is delaying what is still at least a little bit inevitable, the entire roster — nay, the entire organization — nay, the entire region — needed this win in a bad way after the bad taste left over from Game 3’s collapse. Luka Dončić scored 29 points in just 32 minutes and Kyrie Irving added 21 in just 30 minutes, as the Mavs’ star duo both rested for the final 14 minutes of the win.
The 84 points the Mavericks held Boston to in Game 4 was seven points fewer than their previous low-point output in a game this year, which came in a 104-91 loss to the Bucks in April after the Celtics had already clinched the Eastern Conference’s No. 1 seed.
And that was a freebie, so here are six more key stats from the season-saving win that, in the grand scheme, really only brings a slight breeze back into the Mavericks’ sails. But, hey, as North Texans can attest this time of year, a slight breeze is better than no breeze.
38: The margin of victory
The Mavs’ 38-point win represents the third-highest margin of victory ever in an NBA Finals game. Celtics coach Joe Mazzula waved the white flag and took out his starters late with 3:18 left in the third quarter.
Dallas led by as many as 48 points in the lopsided win. Jaden Hardy put Dallas ahead 115-67 midway through the fourth on a 3-pointer assisted by Tim Hardaway Jr. in extended garbage time.
36.3%: Boston’s field goal shooting
The Mavs kept the Boston offense in front of them on defense, avoiding the dreaded blow-by, which in turn prevented the Celtics from getting as many open 3-pointers on kickouts.
Dallas held Jaylen Brown to 3-of-12 shooting. They held Jayson Tatum to 4-of-10, and Derrick White to 2-of-8 in the win. No one in green scored more than 15 points in Game 4.
21-7: Mavericks’ first/second quarter run
The Mavericks put the game away early with a run that started in the first quarter and leaked into the second. Dallas and Boston traded jabs for the first six minutes of the game, as is customary in this series, before Xavier Tillman’s 3-point play in the lane pulled them to within one, down 15-14, with 5:36 left in the frame.
In the next two minutes and change, the Mavs rattled off 10 straight points, six coming from Dončić. He bullied his way to 13 points in the first with businesslike precision an attack-first, complain-less attitude.
That 10-0 spurt became a 21-7 run early in the second when Dante Exum drove through the teeth of that vaunted Celtics defense for a nice finish to give the Mavs their largest lead of the series to that point, 36-21, with 11 minutes left in the first half.
Dallas had a 12-point lead early in Game 3, but collapsed for the next two-plus quarters to lose in demoralizing fashion. On Friday, though, the Mavericks turned on the afterburners with that 15-point lead. After Jaylen Brown went 1-for-2 from the free throw line, the Mavs outscored the Celtics 22-13 in the final nine minutes of the first half to take a 61-35 lead into the break.
60-26: Dallas’ points-in-the-paint advantage
The Mavericks owned the paint against the Celtics Friday, the same way they did against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves win Rounds 2 and 3 of this playoff run. Boston did not score a basket inside the 3-point line at all in the second quarter, and that’s exactly when the game got away from them.
65-39: Dallas’ rebounding advantage
Everyone who entered the game for the Mavericks was active on the boards. The effort was relentless, and it translated to a lopsided win in the battle of the boards as well.
Dereck Lively II earned his second straight double-double in these NBA Finals with 11 points and 12 rebounds. His 11 points and 13 boards in Game 3 may have been Dallas’ lone bright spot in that otherwise horrific loss. He brings an energy off the bench that is unmatched on this roster.
1-for-1: Dereck Lively II’s 3-point shooting
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Visions of sugarplums danced in the heads of Mavs fans everywhere when Dončić found Lively alone in the right corner midway through the first quarter and the big man rose up for a 3-pointer with the confidence of guard and splashed in his only attempt from deep of these playoffs.
With the 3-pointer, Lively is now the youngest player ever to make a 3-pointer in the NBA Finals. He’s also now the only player in Mavericks franchise history to record four or more offensive rebounds and hit a 3-pointer in one half of a playoff game. The 13 rebounds he grabbed in Game 3 made him the youngest player in NBA history to record double-digit boards in an NBA Finals game. Only Lively and someone named Magic Johnson have ever recorded back-to-back double-doubles at age 20 in NBA Finals history. If we are effusive in our praise of the youngster, it’s because he continues to make it crystal clear at every turn that he is no normal rookie.
We’ve heard tell of a developing jump shot from the 20-year-old rookie, but seeing him hit one in the NBA Finals can only make one wonder just how good this kid can be going forward. Even if the Mavs can’t pull off the impossible in the next three few games, Lively’s continued development will be huge for this team in the coming years. He’s grown so much throughout this playoff run, and the sky appears to be the limit for this young man.
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The search for the next general manager or president of basketball operations of the Dallas Mavericks has begun. They terminated Nico Harrison in November, which was about nine months too late, and gave any available candidates clear notice that they were open for business.
The plan was always to wait until after the season to start the search. While names popped up as the season reached an end, they didn’t begin turning over the staff until the Monday after the season ended. However, Dallas Mavericks fans are not going to like how the team is going about the search.
Patrick Dumont Leading Search for General Manager
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that the Mavericks are not hiring a search firm in their hunt for a new lead executive. Instead, team governor Patrick Dumont is “acting as his own point person.”
This is an… interesting decision, to say the least. Dumont is not a basketball person whatsoever, and most organizations usually hire a search firm. The Chicago Bulls hired one as they look for their replacement for Arturas Karnisovas. Just because a firm is hired doesn’t mean a team will listen, though.
The Mavericks hired a firm in their last search for a GM. They let Donnie Nelson go in 2021 after a long tenure with the Mavs. Instead of listening to the firm, though, Mark Cuban ignored it to hire Nico Harrison, who had no previous NBA front office experience. Harrison had been an executive with Nike, which gave him connections with players like Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, and plenty of others.
For a while, that seemed to be working out okay. While he still had some questionable transactions, such as trading for Christian Wood and letting Jalen Brunson walk in free agency, they were still able to make a run to the NBA Finals in 2024. Then, he blew it all up, trading away Luka Doncic for an older and injured Anthony Davis, and the team hasn’t been the same since.
It’s imperative that the Mavericks get this hire correct. The interim Co-GM setup with Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley has performed admirably, but the 2026 NBA Draft is important for the Mavs to get right. It’s their best chance to pair Cooper Flagg with another young star, as they don’t own their first-round pick again until 2031 after this.
Hiring the right GM could help bring in more draft capital by bringing in bad contracts or flipping veterans into picks.
Dumont was able to convince Rick Welts, a Hall of Famer, to come out of retirement to be the CEO and lead the charge for a new arena. Maybe Dumont pulls another rabbit out of his hat for the GM.
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For a moment, it looked like FC Dallas was on its way to another statement win at home tonight.
Petar Musa scored two first half goals, to extend his Golden Boot leading tally to nine goals. But after Dallas grabbed control, the Galaxy found a way back before halftime with goals from Lucas Sanabria and Joseph Paintsil.
The second half brought more chances and more frustration for Dallas, which finished the night with 13 shots to LA’s nine. In the end, the point stretched Dallas’ unbeaten run to five games, though just like last week, it felt like another match where Dallas left points on the table.
Key Moments
7’ – GOAL! After a poor pass back by a LA defender, Petar Musa was free to go one-on-one with the LA goalkeeper. After a touch to get ahead of a defender, Musa slotted home his eighth goal of the season from outside the penalty box.
21’ – Offside! Joaquin Valiente sent a floating ball over the Galaxy defense, where Musa was able to get behind the defense and make an easy play for what appeared to be his second goal of the night. The play was called offside despite a fairly lengthy review period.
38’ – GOAL! This one counts! Musa gets his second of the night off a great ball from Chris Cappis. Logan Farrington picked off the ball in the midfield. He then played Cappis wide to the left of the penalty area. Cappis immediately played a ball back across the goal for Musa to slide in and finish for his ninth of the season.
43’ – Goal LA. Lucas Sanabria got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He took a couple of touches to get outside the penalty box before firing a shot that beat Michael Collodi at the near post.
45+4’ – Goal LA. Gabriel Pec got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He pulled the ball back a bit, which caught a pair of Dallas defenders. This allowed Joseph Painstil to get free behind the Dallas defense as Pec played him through inside the penalty area. Pec immediately smashed home a shot above Collodi to tie the game.
75’ – Another offside goal. This time on a corner kick for Dallas, after a scrum in the penalty box, Kaick hammered home what looked to be the go-ahead goal. But after a few seconds the flag was raised due to a deflection on Osaze Urhoghide, who was in an offside position.
Instant Reaction
Yeah, this is another disappointing result for this team. In a real way, it felt like the first half against Houston from last month. Dallas grabbed the lead, looked in control, but some defensive miscues opened the game up for the visitors to climb back.
With a double-game week coming up, this will certainly be another game where Dallas will wonder ‘what if’ more than anything else…especially when you factor in the two goals called off for offside.
About the Subs
Eric Quill went to his bench for the first time in the 66th minute, as he brought on Santiago Moreno for Logan Farrington. Quill went to his bench again 81st minute with Ran Binyamin and Nolan Norris coming on for Sebastien Ibeagha and Deedson. The final sub came during stoppage time with Herman Johansson and Joaquin Valiente coming off for Sam Sarver and rookie Nick Simmonds, who made his MLS debut.
Man of the Match
No question about it tonight, it has to be Musa.
Where does this fit into the season
As of this writing, the draw puts Dallas into a three-way tie for 5th place with Real Salt Lake and Seattle. Both are in action right now and look firmly in control of their games. I’d expect Dallas to be in 7th place by the end of the night.
What’s next for FC Dallas
Dallas wraps up a three-game homestand next Wednesday night as they host Minnesota United.
Dallas, TX
Akheem Mesidor selected by Cowboys by Blogging The Boys in SB Nation’s community mock draft
Akheem Mesidor, Edge, Miami
Pass rush has been an issue since the Micah Parsons trade. The Rashan Gary trade helped, but Dallas still needs an injection of talent. Akheem Mesidor fits here because his body size allows for some versatility inside and out, something DC Christian Parker utilizes. Mesidor is also a high-motor player with a deep bag of pass rush moves.
His last season at Miami was full of disruption in the offensive backfield and he shows an all-around game, not just a bend-around-the-edge pass rusher. Yes, he’s a little older than you’d like in a rookie (25), but his motor, pass rush toolbox, and ability to play the run matches up with a need and makes him a quality pick at number 20.
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