Tatum had one of his best games as a player IMO and most people probably won't even realize it. The amount of shots/open looks he creates for his teammates all night was insane. The unselfish play from him is a key reason why the team shined on offense. All night long he gave the ball up for better shots/drives and never once demanded the ball simply so he could boost his numbers up with everyone else's. That's the definition of maturity, leadership, and above all winning basketball.

6:00 I'm crying efjejfjef "and that's a rip-through foul on White for... having arms"

I love how Al knows teams want him as their match up, and he comes thru with a block on Luka… that’s a different type of tone setting

The beauty of matchups. Denver is probably the only team which can hang and beat this Celtics but they got beat by their only match-up issue in the league in the Wolves who then got beast by their match-up issue team in Dallas.

Masterful defensive gameplan and execution by boston. Credit to the coaching staff and the players

WHO THE FUCK IS TINGUS PINGUS AND WHY IS HE BEATING MY GOAT!!?

That play by brown was just a little glimpse into how smart the guy is. Worth every dollar

Boston has 5 of the 7 best players. Tatum had 16 points and they still win by 20. Imagine Luka having 16 points...

This is the best channel for nba analysis. You say things we dont notice or other channels talk about.

Boston having people able to shoot in any of the 5 positions is KEY to the spacing they can apply. You move your bigs to protect, then you gotta face the guards infiltrating inside, easy and simple.

I think Dallas needs to rethink the dunker spots behind the backboard. I think that's a viable strategy with 7 footers, but not 7'4" Porzingis. The dunker has to try to slide their dunk under the backboard but somehow over Porzingis, and if Porzingis only has to reach 9 ft high to block a dunk attempt, that means Porzingis can cheat out like 8 feet. If instead of the dunker spot, the dunker made sure they never step behind the backboard, sure it messes with spacing and makes for a slimmer passing lane, but at least Porzingis now has to defend REAL vertical spacing. I'm not saying that anyone's going to dunk over Porzingis regularly neither btw... but in addition to the backboard playing defense, it's also helping Porzingis with the whistle. If you set up in front of the backboard for a dunk instead of behind it, Porzingis is still going to meet you at the rim much of the time, but 1- you have a chance at getting by over or through his hand, and 2- you have a chance of the refs blowing the whistle. I'm not delusional though. The fact is... with Porzingis' arrival in good health, the Mavs' plans of dominating the paint are pretty well over. At best, the paint is now just a war zone. The Mavs need to start thinking of their offensive pressure in the paint as a spacing measure, not a viable scoring strategy. By all means, take the dunks when they're there, but understand that the dunks are not going to be there until the Mavs make some 3's and punish the drop-coverage. Speaking of... Kleber played 18:40 and he took ZERO SHOTS (just 1 layup). That is spacing POISON. He was -15 (worst per minute of anyone on the court). The Celtics were DARING Kleber to shoot the 3 and he won't oblige. If his shoulder isn't confident enough to shoot when he's alone at the 3, he can't be on the floor. He is ruining the spacing for everyone else.

"A rip-through foul from White for having arms." lol

I really don't see how Mavs wins this series. Boston may have the best starting 5 from a balance pov we have ever seen. Everyone is a 2 way player, everyone's a shooting threat, everyone's got size. It's absolutely masterful how they built that team.

Thinking Basketball just uploaded 🎉🎉

get the popcorn people, new thinking basketball just dropped

Thinking Basketball, awesome video bro

Superb breakdown of a defensive masterclass by Boston. I haven't seen this good team defense in the finals since the Spurs ten years ago. Brilliant coaching and you also can see each of their top six players being intentional and disciplined in the execution of every play. And the video showed Porzingis' huge impact on both ends of the court. Look at the entire series played by Porzingis starting at the 4:09 mark. For a big man to move that effectively in support defense is amazing. This may be one of your best film breakdowns.

Thank you Ben for posting this, now Mavericks have a chance to figure out how to get over this slump

this is the type of break down I want to see from the big media, not talking points. Great stuff love it.

0:01 by having 4 very very good (elite even) on ball defenders, from 1-4 all on the court at the same time. Celts are what the the Twolves thought they were.

Best, least bias analysis I’ve seen on KZfaq. Subscribed, can’t wait to tune in after each finals game

what were the mavs doing differently during their third quarter run that helped them massively cut into the deficit, and then what changed again after the timeout? would like to hear your input on the various runs and adjustments within the game in future videos

For these type of videos, I'd like to see your thoughts on what adjustments the losing team might make

It’s been clear through the playoffs that Kidd will make adjustments to fix some of this, but I still think there’s too much of a talent gap here for the Mavs to win. So many polls have the Mavs winning and I truly don’t understand why, unless people are just picking who they hope will win. Yes, Luka and Kyrie are great players and create a ton of good shots. But Boston has the best guard defenders in the NBA and a rotation of them so Brown and Tatum won’t get burned out. The Celtics would have been weaker against a team like the Wolves or Nuggets since they don’t have as much vertical on defense to stop Jokic and AG or Towns and Gobert. But they have the perfect lineup to slow Kyrie and Luka, and since ALL of the Mavs offense runs through those guys, there isn’t enough playmaking on the roster to cope. Meanwhile, Kyrie and Luka aren’t going to stop Tatum and Brown, and the Celtics still have Jrue, White, and Tingus behind them. Luka and Kyrie are good enough to carry the Mavs to a couple wins with monster performances, but I just don’t see that happening more than twice. Boston in 6.

boston are just such a balanced team honestly, they have so many different options, but i do believe that the sheer talent and skill dallas possess should have a much bigger impact in game 2 once they adapt as a team to boston, i expect a competitive game

One thing that kept pissing me off all game was how easily Dallas was willing to switch bigs off of Tingus Pingus, leaving him on an island against Jaden Hardy or Josh Green, both of whom are almost a foot shorter, and way weaker. They switched on weak screens and dribble handoffs. It was really stupid to do. But I feel like Kidd will come into game 2 with adjustments that'll change the whole series

Crazy how you're making me see stuff I didn't even come close to noticing during the game

Everything on point but what made it look like a masterpiece was Mavs shooting poorly. If mavs would have made even half of the Open shots, Cs wouldn't have that freedom to keep a player hovering over the paint all the time. Mavs got to shoot high percentage from 3.. absolutely no other way abt it.

I have faith that Jason Kidd will adjust. Unless I'm seeing something that isn't there, he's been brilliant with adjusting to defensive strategies this postseason

Wish pj was shooting like this against the thunder 😑, but fr tho pj shooting will be needed if the mavs going to win

People think its an anomaly and mavs always lose game 1 and come back strong… but this shows they didn’t learn from the in season beat down, match ups are key to winning… also playoff brown is now activated and upgraded to finals brown, they also have the super 6th man in porzingis!! Line up versatility is key to boston winning so many games in the playoffs, and the strategy and schemes from their coaching staff also vastly improved this season, case in point the pre switch when luka hunts for bigs, and tatum guarding the bigs are legit strategy. I think boston line up versatility might be a big factor for this version or line up of dallas. Honestly if they continue to let boston play like this and if boston gonna be aggressive to attack the paint (as they have the luxury of 5 out) and keep defense on them and lively in foul trouble this is gonna be a short short series, Boston abuse them in their last game in the season for what 28? Game 1 in the finals for 18, people who saying boston can’t replicate this ain’t watching them play this season. Cause this is who they are this season they different and that is why they’re historic this season including the playoffs ❤

@7:45 the way holiday switched over that screen is beaitiful

76ers and Lakers are watching and thinking "Jaylen and Jayson were on the board when we picked (Simmons, Ingram, Lonzo, Fultz)." Those 2 could be crushing it as the 2 best players in the world in LA (because media would prop them up in LA) or the best trio in history with Embiid actually staying healthy since he can just take nights off without worry with the Jays picking up the slack.

It’s kind of crazy how many times one team/guy can look so great just to get instantly figured out in the next game/series this year. The adjustments have been the highlights for me so far in these playoffs, mostly for the west but still. Kudos to the coaches and players honestly. Now let’s see if the Mavs have a plan B because that Celtics defense seems perfectly tuned to contain them.

Feels bad for Jones.... multiple highlights with his orange shoes and getting blocked...

Regardless of how this series ends, Luka has got to understand that he needs a plan B. He is fantastic as an on ball scorer and creator, but even that approach has its limitations. Now he needs to develop an off ball game, perhaps like a 96 Jordan, screening, moving and posting up in advantageous positions. Not only will it give him more options, it will likely prolong his career.

Finally Dallas met a team that doesn't allow them to crowd the paint and leave ppl in the corners. It really felt like they had a bit of luck with how badly OKC was shooting and how well Luka was shooting againts the Wolves. But that was probably also because Wolves didn't attack Luka that much so he was saving a lot of energy on defense.

You gotta do one on Jrue Holiday defense on Kyrie

I think videos on good defense should show plays where the shot goes in, too. Sometimes the guy just makes it - just like running a play to get an open look is successful whether or not the ball goes in. Process oriented vs results oriented - Celtics are the former, and, ironically, it gets results.

I'm going to miss Horford. He has been an essential piece that glued everything together. From the IT days, to the Kyrie exleriment, and waiting on JT and JB to mature, Al has been amazing. Even if he left to Philly for a while. I hope he sticks around for another season or two. But I think if the Celtics win it all this year, Horford might call it quits.

Tatum on Gafford is a really smart move. As usual, a very insightful analysis 👌

One thing I do not understand: the role players had so much open 3s, what they made in previous games against other teams. This time they didn't hit, but if the would hit it would be a complete other game.

really interested to see how jason kidd counters this gameplan. mazulla is showing why he's one of the best coaches in the league

it might help if dallas moved a little off ball with how tight boston was defending. they are just spotting up while two guys move like 28 other teams do.

Where were you hiding during the Mavs and Minesotta series?

Perhaps Tatum's ideal role would be becoming a more offensively-orientated version of Draymond Green. The C's are at their best when they use his defensive versatility and solid playmaking skills.

If KP stays healthy (enough), Mavs are totally screwed...they'll need to fight for even a win (two would really be something). For me, it became clear after Mavs strong run in the 3rd: As great as Doncic and Irving are, even if they're both hitting shots it's like they're playing a game of chess with half the pieces. But that's a big "if" - Porzingis himself intimated pregame that his calf isn't fully healed.

Wolves fan here. I've been saying this is how we had to play the Mavs. Just switch and rotate. Instead for some reason, Coach Finch has our guys fighting through the screen like their lives depend on it, or we blitz and it gives the Mavs an easy basket. Boston is amazing. Joe Mazulla really cooked.

Not a Celtics fan, but this is a clinic on how to defend a 1-man team. Dallas is essentially two 1-man teams that take turns. Masterful defense.

Celtics got Porzingis AND 2 first round picks for Marcus Smart. That is crazy

I was waiting for your video , u and some of Kobe's old videos tought me some basketball and helped understand it better , thank you for your work sir 🙏🏾🙏🏾

Wouid love to see a shorter review of some of the Celtics winning series against the Bucks and 76ers over the years. I think what you’ll find it that this crew has WAY overperformed in the playoffs early in their careers and a big reason for that is that they just appear to be specialists at dealing with heliocentric players / offenses. They’ve always been really good at neutralizing and throwing counters on these types of players but never in an overhelp way that sacrifices the integrity of the rest of the defense. 😊

i really hope there’s a vid coming that shows how you’d counter the celts def, TB!

those plays really gives me a goose bump.

Great video! Love your analysis

I think we might have underestimated joe mazzulla, due to the talent of these players

Advanced age is a wild way to call someone old

I love how whenever these come out by like game 3 "this is the adjustment they made to counter" which is what happened with Minnesota and Denver

Makes me think of the way the warriors defended jokic : take out the playmaking and force him to score. He will but he won't score 100 pts, your team will

My favorite thing about the NBA finals right now? Is having to wait for five days between each game...Cause that doesn't kill the momentum or anything.It's so fun N B A I love it😊

I kinda hating the final schedules. So many days to rest, fatigue is not a factor anymore.

Hauser a great compliment

7:19 Tingus Pingus glutes playing more d than Kyrie.

It's not Luke's fault PJ Washington literally cannot hit a wide open 3 lol

styles makes fights as said in boxing 🥊

I said before the series started celtics spacing would be the difference maker. Mavs rely heavily on gafford/lively's help defense in the paint. When you have bigs that can force them out the 3 point line that leaves the paint wide open.

Mavs might need to play 5 out with pj at the 5. Lively and gafford are basically useless this series because of kp. The Celtics defense is masterful. It also shows how good AL is on defense at this point.

Al Horford is hitting Vince Carter and LeBron territory with how good he's still playing at nearly 40 (and Vince was ok until he was like 42).

Amazing breakdown!!!!

Its because they didnt ice the screen and slide their feet

Such smart adjustments there by Boston

Jrue and White are two of the top elite defensive guards in league. Oh and did I mention they also have JB, Tatum, and the Unicorn? Unfortunately Dallas does not have a stretch big that could also guard Porzingis so its GGs.

your analysis is so good that I think my mom would understand whats going on if i show her this

Thinking Basketball, i turned on notifications

7:19 porzingis throwing it back

Good game plan...Let's see the counters.

game 2 mavs adjustment. Irving runs plays. Luka at the post

One thing not explicitly mentioned here is that other than Irving and Doncic Dallas lacks good shooters - the defense just ignores them.

There isn't anyone luka can attack is there? Even when he had Sam Houser it didn't even work. Celtics might have one of the best defensive teams all time.

Would love to hear your predictions of what adjustments you think the opposing team will make. Be kind of a fun last piece.

Brad Stevens is a genious and he is not praised enough. This is finally looking like Boston's year.

Surely this means they start gafford and lively together with washington as the SF - Kleber coming off the bench? - Or start kleber with gafford

I like watching these videos even though I don't understand some of it. Help me out here, At 0:30 why is DJJ the roll man instead of a big guy?

Luka's former teammate (KP) now being the key obstacle in his path to winning a championship is such a great story... Even Spielberg couldn't have written a top-tier script like this lol Great analysis as always btw

How would you propose a 4 team trade between Atlanta, Cleveland, New Orleans, and Phoenix???

Love this analysis 🔥. Dope to see the game at a deeper level.

Pre-switch, great terminology

That Luka carry at 1:30 was egregious! How that doesn’t get called idk

Awesome breakdown! Even though I think C's win the series, Dallas seemed to play fairly passive on offensive, imo. (settling for what the defensive gives early in the possession). I wonder if they win the next game just from increasing their offball movement and passes per possession.

A pretty heady Celtics team and underrated defense.

Celtics have a modern roster built to win Championships this decade. They have five out and scoring at all positions in addition to tenacious defence.

I agree with much of the analysis. I'm curious tough to see how this will unfold on a better shooting night for dallas. As brilliant as boston defense was it still relied a lot on dallas missing open shots. Now ..how often dallas can shoot 30% on open shots? I'm.expecting a much more competitive game when that number will go up.even by 10%.

Boston is a think tank

Not a word about Irving in the video? He was completely shut off...

Porzingis and Horford together is dangerous lmao..

Thank you for pronouncing „Kleber“ correctly.

I get that the C's are a great team, but its not exactly like they are unbeatable.. easily could've been down 3-1 to the injured Pacers. They had Nembhard out there cooking them and if it wasn't for there lack of clutch genes, Indiana were dominating and holding their own a lot of that series. I believe this is far from over once Coach Kidd and Dallas figure out and negate a few things that went wrong in game 1. Mavs in 6 or 7.

Where are the Spain PnRs and the Staggered sets up top to handle these stupid matchup issues, these are easily countered and Luka can just go into the post and bully everyone but Tatum. Also, very little offball action by the Mavs. Mavs have the tools to handle what the Celtics threw at them, they just ran straight into the obvious here. Celtics made obvious pre-switches, shaded to Luka and abandoned weaker MAvs shooters.

I can see a sweep incoming

They really listened to KG