Code sports
Sports Betting
News, Blog and GuidesGame 1 of the NBA Finals is right around the corner and both the Boston Celtics and the Dallas Mavericks will be looking to draw first blood at TD Garden.
Dane ArlauckasdfinesttweetsUpdate: Jun 5th, 2024 19:31 EDT0
David Butler IIUSA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con
After a week long break from NBA basketball, the Finals are set to start from Boston, Massachusetts on Thursday night. The Celtics will play host to the Dallas Mavericks in Game 1 as both teams look to return to championship glory for the first time in over a decade.
Boston start Finals at the Garden
Boston earned the right to host the NBA Finals after finishing the regular season with the best record in the East. Joe Mazzulla led his revamped team back to the Finals after going 64-18 in the regular season, and then easing past their competition in the Eastern Conference. They beat the Miami Heat 4-1, and then the Cleveland Cavaliers 4-1 before sweeping past the Indiana Pacers in four games.
In each and everyone of those series, Boston won Game 1 of the series as the home team. They will have a chance to do that on Thursday night in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks. Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and the Mavs haven’t had such an easy road in the playoffs. They lost their first two Game 1′s against the Los Angeles Clippers and then against the Oklahoma City Thunder, before taking care of each of those teams in six games.
MAVERICKS. CELTICS. 🍿The #NBAFinals presented by @YouTubeTV are officially set!Game 1: Thursday, June 6th at 8:30pm/et on ABC pic.twitter.com/9U9ng7hAjr
— NBA (@NBA) May 31, 2024
The Western Conference Finals was, on paper, their easiest of the playoff series they have played during their run to the Finals. They won both Game 1 and 2 on the road before ended the series in Minnesota in Game 5. Now they will look to go into Boston and steal the series opener from TD Garden.
Game 1 a key to title
Obviously winning Game 1 is important. You take the series lead. You set the tone. Most importantly, you take one step closer to the closing out the series, and in this case, winning the NBA title. Statistically, Game 1 has proved incredibly important in how the series plays out. In the 77 NBA Finals that have been played, 70.1% of the champions have won the series opener. While it’s not automatic, there have been 54 winners of Game 1 that have gone on to win the NBA Finals.
