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The paths of the two teams meeting in the NBA Finals couldn’t have been more disparate. The Boston Celtics were pre-season favorites, put together an all-time regular season and cruised their way to a 12-2 playoff record against Eastern Conference competition to arrive at the destination where everyone expected them to be. On the other side, we have a Dallas Mavericks squad that was 26-23 at the beginning of February before receiving a trade-deadline jolt that transformed them into a team that slayed the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder and the upstart Minnesota Timberwolves (who had just eliminated the defending champs).
The Mavs haven’t been the only surprise in this year’s playoffs, however. From the first round — which it’s hard to believe started almost two months ago — to the conference finals, we’ve seen shocking developments at every turn. As we prepare to watch Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and the red-hot Mavericks take on the juggernaut Celtics helmed by Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, here’s a look back at some of the biggest surprises of the NBA playoffs so far.
Kyrie Irving’s defense
We could list the entire Mavericks defense here as a major surprise, but they did have the NBA’s best defensive rating over the final 15 games of the regular season, so at least there were signs that this was possible. Instead, we’ll focus on Irving, who was long considered to be nothing more than an object to be picked on, bullied and battered on defense. Part of the skepticism following Irving’s trade to Dallas was that the defensive deficiencies of a backcourt comprised of him and Luka Doncic would have a limited playoff ceiling.
Irving has catapulted that pessimism into the stratosphere with his performance during the 2024 postseason, as the Mavericks prepare for the NBA Finals. Dallas’ defense has seen zero drop-off with Irving on the floor, allowing 110 points per 100 possessions. Combine that with his astronomically positive impact on the other end (offensive rating has gone from 90 without him to 118 with him on the floor), and you get a sense…
Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/biggest-surprises-of-2024-nba-playoffs-kyrie-irvings-defense-celtics-surprising-home-losses-more/
Author : Colin Ward-Henninger
Publish date : 2024-06-04 15:45:11
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