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The NBA Finals are finally upon us and the league will have champion breaking a long-term duck once the series ends as the Boston Celtics face off against the Dallas Mavericks.
Boston is without a championship since their 2008 win, while Dallas hasn’t won a chip since 2011, and both teams are desperate to put an end to that drought in 2024.
We’ll take a look at the series and how the two teams match up, and provide you with our best free NBA betting picks to try and earn you some extra cash while you enjoy the best basketball players going head-to-head.
| NBA Finals 2024 |  |  |  |
| Boston Celtics | -225 | -210 | -210 |
| Dallas Mavericks | +195 | +175 | +175 |
Learn more about how to bet on the NBA Finals here.
NBA Finals 2024 information
- Game 1: June 6th 2024, 20:30 ET – TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
- Game 2: June 9th 2024, 20:00 ET – TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
- Game 3: June 12th 2024, 20:30 ET – American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
- Game 4: June 14th 2024, 20:30 ET – American Airlines Center- Dallas, Texas
- Game 5 (if necessary): June 17th 2024, 20:30 ET – TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
- Game 6 (if necessary): June 20th 2024, 20:30 ET – American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
- Game 7 (if necessary): June 23rd 2024, 20:00 ET – TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Boston Celtics post-season review
Boston were most people’s favorites to be crowned NBA champions at the start of the season, having been beaten in the final by the Golden State Warriors back in 2022 and then making it to the Eastern finals in 2023.
They have matched those expectations by making it to another Championship series, having put together a league-best record of 64-18 in the regular season.
That gave them the top-seed spot in the Eastern Conference, where their first playoff series came against the Miami Heat. Jayson Tatum led the team to victory in game 1 with a triple-double, but they suffered a home defeat in game 2 in a 10-point game. Following that however they cruised to victory with three straight wins, sealing the series with a 34-point thrashing in game 5 at the TD Garden with Jaylen Brown and Derrick White hitting 25 points each.
Then came a tricky series with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the conference semi-finals. They dominated the first game to win by 25 points before losing the second by a wide 24-point margin. But just like the first round they then cruised to three straight wins with Tatum top-scoring in all three matches to reach a third consecutive conference finals.
There they faced off against the Indiana Pacers and really hit top form, as Tatum, Brown, and White dominated the series to earn a 4-0 series sweep and put them within touching distance of a first career championship.
Dallas Mavericks post-season review
The Mavericks have finally clicked with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving in the same team, and the Mavericks claimed a 50-32 record in the regular season which tied them for sixth-best in the NBA as a result.
That earned them the fifth seed in the Western Conference and set up a first-round series against the expectant LA Clippers. Doncic hit 33 points and 13 rebounds in game 1 but the Mavericks were well beaten, before bouncing back with wins in game 2 and game 3. Game 4 saw the Clippers win to level the series despite Irving hitting 40 points and Doncic getting a triple-double, before wins in game 5 and game 6 gave them a 4-2 series win.
Oklahoma City Thunder in the conference semi-finals came next and the series mirrored the first-round, as they lost the first game before winning the next two and losing the fourth. Once again though, Doncic was the difference as he shone in game 5 and game 6 to progress through to the conference finals with another 4-2 series victory.
That set up a conference finals series against the Minnesota Timberwolves, with Dallas claiming victory in each of the first three games, and Doncic hitting 32+ points every time. But Minnesota refused to be swept and claimed a 105-100 win despite another Doncic triple-double in game 4.
However, despite game 5 taking place in Minnesota and the fans pushing them to make a comeback, Doncic and Irving hit 36 points each to become conference champions and make their first finals for the first time since 2011.
NBA Picks: Boston Celtics to win series
This series is a really even match up, with Dallas flying currently and arguably having the best player in the league right now in their team leading their charge. But it’s Boston who are the favorites and it makes sense that they are too.
Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Derrick White took care of business and handily eliminated each of their opponents, including a sweep of the Pacers — albeit a narrow one — in the Eastern Conference Finals, adding on to the fact they had the best regular season record of the entire league.
Boston also won both meetings with Dallas during the regular season, highlighted by a 138-110 victory back in March.
When comparing the rosters and performances over the whole season, Boston should win the series even though the odds are far too short considering how close this series really is.
NBA Picks: Jayson Tatum to win NBA Finals MVP
If the Celtics are to be successful in winning their first championship since 2008, then the man averaging 26.0 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 5.9 assists in the postseason is going to be crowned as the MVP.
In the 21st century, we’ve yet to see a player on a championship-winning team average 25+ points, 10+ rebounds, and 5+ assists and not win the Finals MVP, and Tatum is doing just that. Unless his form falls off a cliff in the finals, it’s his to lose.
In the 2022 Finals, he averaged 21.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 7.0 assists in what was widely considered a disappointing series for him, and two years on he’s even better and more influential for Boston.
If you’re keen on Tatum or any Celtic in this market, I’d consider striking on their Finals MVP odds before Game 1. Boston went a mind-boggling 37-4 at TD Garden so if they take the lead in the series the odds will drop.
Tatum is due his flowers, and he gets them with a championship this year.
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