The Boston Celtics flew out of the blocks at home to take a 1-0 lead in their matchup with the Dallas Mavericks. The NBA Finals continue on Monday morning with Game 2 in Boston and as always, we have you covered with a full preview and betting tips for free below!
We bring you our best bet and Same Game Multi for Game 2 below, and be sure to head over to our NBA Tips page regularly as we’ll be providing full betting previews for each and every game of the NBA Finals!
2023-24 NBA Finals Betting Tips
Dallas Mavericks at Boston Celtics
TD Garden, Monday 10:00am AEST
Series score: Boston Celtics lead 1-0
The Boston Celtics hit the ground running in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, outscoring the Dallas Mavericks by 17 points in the first quarter (37-20) – setting a record for the biggest margin after one frame in NBA Finals Game 1 history.
Kristaps Porzingis set the tone with an incredible first quarter despite missing the best part of six weeks with injury. In the first quarter alone he had double figure points to go along with three rebounds and three blocks to get the party started in Boston.
The Celtics were hitting everything from deep early in the piece and would go onto land 16/38 of their triples (38.1%), while the Mavericks could only connect on seven of their 27 attempts from three (25.9%) which ended up being the deciding factor in the result.
The Celtics had an even spread of contributors with all five of their starting five scoring in double-digits, led by Jaylen Brown who finished with 22 points in another stat-stuffing display. For the Mavericks, only Luka Doncic was a consistent threat and he ended with a game-high 30 points. Kyrie Irving struggled throughout the contest and could only finish with 12 points.
Game 2 Prediction: The Mavericks have had three full days to lick their wounds and prepare to bounce back on Monday morning. They’ll take confidence from the fact that they haven’t lost back-to-back games at all in these playoffs. On top of that, the Celtics have only lost twice in these playoffs, but both losses came in Game 2’s at home.
You can expect a far better performance from the Mavericks in this one. Irving won’t struggle like he did and it’s likely the Celtics don’t bang home eight threes in the opening quarter again. I’ve been big on the Mavericks all playoffs and remain confident in their ability to quickly bounce back here.
Dallas Mavericks to Win
$3.20 (1 Unit)
Same Game Multi
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Jayson Tatum 25+ Points – Tatum wasn’t required to be at his best in Game 1 but with a more competitive game anticipated for Game 2, I expect the ball to be in his hands more often. He’ll also be keen to make a statement after recent murmurs that he’s no longer the number one guy on the team.
Kyrie Irving 25+ Points – Was really poor in Game 1 where he finished with just 12 points on 6-19 shooting. He knows his importance to the team and will be fired up for a much better performance second up.
Derrick White 1+ Steal – Back to the well with this leg. Love his role as a help defender and will get plenty of opportunities to get in the lanes.
SGM Odds: $5 at BoomBet