NBA Finals Games 1 and 2 Takeaways | Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks | JJ Redick

NBA Finals Games 1 and 2 Takeaways | Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks | JJ Redick

Welcome to The Old Man and the three things presented by Dick Sporting Goods with JJ reick and the dunker spot fellas how we doing today doing pretty well doing pretty well happy to talk some hoop exciting times and basketball period so happy to be here same bro same quick stop over in New York for me on my way from Boston to Dallas but we’re getting it in we’re getting it in all right let’s talk uh first two games this NBA Finals um I think there’s a lot that we can sort of get into uh a lot of things that are I think particularly important a lot of maybe not even predictions but uh thoughts on how Dallas can get back in this series uh but I I want to I want to start with just a general statement and Doris touched on this uh in the open yesterday of course it came up again uh throughout the game um it is very cool regardless of they win this if they win this series or not it is very cool to watch a basketball team play like a basketball team and by that I mean it is with the Boston Celtics it really is about the strength of the group the strength of the collective uh they are conceptually very discipline in what they try to do I mean Joe moua talked about their game one uh was as good as they’ve played all year in terms of executing a game plan and the attention to detail but within that and and those Concepts and the game planning there’s a freedom and a level of trust in allowing guys to play to their instincts that I think we see time and time again particularly with Jaylen Brown Drew Derek white um it’s just it’s a fun thing to watch and this is not Dallas Mavericks fans this is not me [ __ ] on your team this is not me uh saying you aren’t going to win this series if you were up 20 I would start today’s episode talking glowingly about you but you’re not you’re down 20 so I’m going to talk about the Celtics to start and those are my initial thoughts on the Celtics what stands out for you guys after two games um I think for me going big picture first it’s just the way that Boston has been able to dictate terms on both ends of the floor this has very much felt like hey Boston series and I know we’re going to get into some of the smaller details and things like that but the way that the Jays in particular have just put their heads down through the first two games of the series and the efficiency numbers on those drives aren’t particularly great solid very good in game one not so much in game two but their intention and their consistency in saying we are putting you in rotation or we are getting two feet in the paint and seeing what you’re going to do about it 66 drives in game two for Boston per second Spectrum their regular season high was 55 66 is absolutely their postseason high and then the other thing I looked at just in terms of Boston putting Dallas in rotation just how many Closeouts have been defended Boston has defended 50 in two games I think it was 56 in game two for Boston I mean for Dallas just their ability to scramble Dallas to that degree and this is with Dallas making tweaks in the game twoo and I’m sure we’ll talk about those the fact that they have still been able to just put two in the paint and to zoom out to what Joe moula feels we want to win the math battle we want to get the threes up in particular but the fact that they were able to win the paint and the three-point art has been phenomenal and against Luca like they largely just have not put two on the ball against him through the first two games of the series theyve really been able to curtail the types of shots that Dallas has been able to generate on top of that so I’ve just been really impressed with how they put their fingerprints on the series so far I think to bounce off what they all have said it’s just the the mindset for Boston overall as a unit to understand the assignment and to execute the game plan on both ends offensively you mentioned the drives Jason Tatum Jaylen Brown have nailed those but it hasn’t always been the first drive you know I think you heard Joe Missoula in game one saying we don’t have to hit a home run on the first drive it’s the second drive it’s the third drive it’s the commitment to keeping them in rotation and getting the best shot possible I think that they have been really measured and uh trusting each other and knowing you know Jason Tatum seeing that late help even if Dallas is trying to navigate and put different Personnel down there I’m going to drive I’m going to force you to commit we’re going to play out of that we’re going to keep things going uh Drew holidays cuts off ball uh putting guards in the dunker spot like just executing over and over and over again to where it doesn’t feel like you moved them and then defensively you mentioned the mindset to say hey Luca Kyrie were going to switch go one-on-one you saw in that game too actually whether it was Derrick White helping at the elbow when porzo was in a drop or Drew holiday helping off Josh Green we actually will show some help and we’ll commit to this drive and and make you make that pass and we’ll just poke at that so I think the overall mindset is Boston has set their terms and if this is the type of series it’s going to be it’s going to be tough for Dallas to get back in it because Boston’s been so committed to the mission I think when you look at the start from Kyrie and the start from Luca to not overreact to the hot shooting to start and and start putting two on the ball I mean Luca had it going and had pton Pritchard on him at the foul line and he cly just turned around and shot right over of him and there was no it wasn’t like the next play all of a sudden Boston is blitzing they are very committed to this game plan now Joe has said and he’ll say this about any game plan he talked about it you know different times when uh I had a Knicks game and we were talking about Brunson and he’s the second most Blitz player in the league right time and score can dict some game planning within the game um and so there was at times two on the ball particularly in the second half uh with Luca um the one thing that I I just Dallas has to be able to make out someone outside of Luca has to be able to make an above the break three I they it I’m not sure you can win this series unless you start making above the break threes and and you know of course we we want k to be that guy he hasn’t shot well so far um but Josh Green PJ Washington Derrick Jones Jr think about the I think the very first offensive possession Dallas had of this series in game one derck Jones Jr made and above the break three we haven’t seen a lot of that we haven’t seen a lot of that from anybody on Dallas um and so you know uh Jason kid when he was talking about when they get into um when they get into their rotations he was talking about that first pass out they want to actually funnel the ball to the corner so then the swing pass is to the above the break Boston’s just saying no just catch it above the break and just shoot it have it we’re just not g we are committed to not giving up this corner um I think you know with Luca it’s it’s interesting you know I started with the collective you guys brought up the game planning stuff it’s interesting you know I don’t I don’t want to get into this Narrative of like it’s Luca and the best player normally wins the best series but B Boston is the best team I I think what is interesting through the first two games is that there are limitations to any great player and the impact they can have when you go against another great team there are limitations to that certainly Luca Miss some free throws and in the T overs he talked about that but man this guy’s having to generate so much in both games and it’s still just and by the way I think he controlled Pace in both games I think at times Dallas did look to play faster in early offense with throw aads or PJ Washington pushing or Kyrie pushing I just think there’s there’s limitations because there’s no you think about the playoffs and uh and pushing on pressure points and trying to broad holes on in weak spots just not a lot there with Boston there’s just not a lot there to lose that game and and if you kind of do all the numbers where’s the biggest margin honestly it was like you missed too many free throws and Boston didn’t in some ways I don’t want to simplify it but in some ways statistically that’s what it is for Boston to shoot I think they were four for 21 on open three-pointers um to shoot that poorly from three and still win with Luca having a 30-point triple double man it’s going to be tough guys for Dallas let’s go to the bright spots because there were some bright spots um I think for Dallas the first thing that stood out to me as we saw how much success Boston had in the game one with having Drew holiday or Derek white in the dunker spot they did feel more intentional about keeping Daniel Gafford in particular closer to the back basket having some pass offs there whoever was in the corner against them like I would just stay here uh sometimes that is Al Horford sometimes that’s christops sometimes that’s just drew holiday but I’m staying right here so they did at least try to limit some of that and the efficiency on those pick and roles were lower in game two versus game one when I looked that up and then a smaller thing for me brought it up on the game one reaction pod with Boston bringing so much of the full court pressure just the backourt pressure against Luca it did feel like they were more intentional about some of the early hit ahe heads or okay fine we’ll just let PJ Washington bring this ball up there was a late turnover in the fourth quarter with PJ doing a little bit too much against Drew but overall let’s get some quicker Outlets so we can at least have a chance to get into our offense versus spending six seconds with Luca dealing with jayen brown now we’re trying to poke at whatever matchup it is with Boston switching the way they were in game one in particular with some of the pre- switching that we saw when they were trying to get christops in action let’s at least try to cut down some of our time in terms of The Possession count and then just with Luke in general like he just had it going inside the arc early on really tone there so it was nice to see if this is the game plan if you’re not going to show this kind of help and as Steve mentioned they did start sprinkling some more in and being really uh diligent about that but if this is the game plan I’m not looking to find a balance right now I’m just going to hit you and hit you and hit you and hit you and hit you until you do something so at least you can take some solid and Luca kind of taking on the channels there uh it felt like Dallas’s Battleground to win this series in that first quarter uh it felt like their defense was more comfortable Nas mentioned how they work to try and fix their rotations keep size and the paint and take away the dunker spot but I it felt like the second and third efforts were better or at least more consistent there was more effort to okay we switch you drive I’ll just take this drive now we’ll flow back out you saw more of those consistent plays the rotations felt more decisive as far as okay whoever’s in the low man you know if Lively or Gafford switches onto Tatum mbrown force that left luk could go ahead and pull over and now we’ll play out of it and we’ll trust that we can make the rotations over and over again so to have that difference between game one and game two I think is key because in game one it felt like Dallas was all over the place defensively Boston was able to get whatever rotation they wanted out of Dallas and they played out of it now you kind of have more of that automatic we’ve seen from Dallas in this run so that’s a plus for them I I also think offensively PJ Washington looked to be more aggressive at the start I’m going to try and put my head down and drive uh I’m going to try and take some of these threes maybe mixing a post up that’s a positive uh I think you know you mentioned Luca Kyrie had some pretty good drives early and so if he can now get paint touches I think that’s key like if we’re talking about how do you shift Boston how do you get them in rotation I think Dallas has to find a way to get drives um you know above the break three is key but can we mix in some drives can we get someone to help can we commit and and score some points that way uh so I think if Dallas can defend at a certain level they give themselves a chance and I think when JJ mentioned how Joe Joe Missoula said time and score dictate things if it’s a fourth quarter close game and you have Luca playing at this level and maybe Kyrie’s playing at a different level there is an opportunity there so if you’re Dallas you just have to figure out how to get there I think the defense is going to give you wiggle room offensively if this is a series now where Boston feels more comfortable helping off PJ Washington or green or Dar Jones you go back to the same question we’ve asked all all all playoffs can you make them pay they start to make those make them pay things might feel a little different yeah you know you bring up the the sort of endgame stuff can we get to that that portion of the game and have some semblance of uh I don’t know whether it’s control because you have the lead or or you’re within striking dist distance because it’s a one possession game think about when when Drew and Dereck get that steal Drew hits the three right after that Derek white hit his three and and it’s felt like curtains right and Boston goes to the stagnant uh let’s try to find Tatum let’s get him the ball and it’s like two or three really bad possessions in a row and then all of a sudden again it it becomes like a five-point game so I I think Dallas has to feel good like if we can get to the last five minutes and have Luca and Kyrie close it they they have to feel like they have an advant and look Jaylen you know he he had the big Lefty lay of course Dereck white gets the block on PJ was um but I I I do think Dallas still feels comfortable in that setting particularly after the way those last few minutes went offensively for Boston my big question to you is this talk about rotations I agree with you Steve uh Dallas’s rotations were much better their second efforts were much better uh some of it was Boston Miss shots and I feel like when even in reviewing tape it would be like go this rotation is good but like these are NBA guys like you can rotate you can rotate your ass off and they can drill a three right they still created I think it was 39 threes correct they still created 39 threes I I I think I’ll just say it I I’m not sure Dallas we can make any adjustment we can be great in rotations we can make some above the break 3es I don’t know that Dallas can can win four the next five if they can’t stay in front of the [ __ ] basketball and the blow by rate right now across the board extremely high Luca’s Blow by rate uh also very high it feels like whenever they want they can get certain guys on the basketball and Luca being one of them get past that person and get two on the basketball finish at The Rim get fouled spray get out in rotation if you can’t stay in front of the basketball with that spacing I I just I think you’re going to have a hard time winning four out of five I think that’s extremely fair and it makes sense I have a question to bounce off that okay if you’re Dallas do you look at the first two games and start to dial the help back a little bit and put Boston in a scenario where okay you now feel like this is an automatic driving kick for you we work better to contain the ball but we also just try and contest try and stay at home try and get back out to those sprays is that something that they could mix in to try and keep Boston off balance or is this just the terms of the series Tatum missed I know he missed at least three where they brought a help Defender and he missed a layup you know he made a midair adjustment or reversed it and he missed a layup he may have missed four um that’s eight points if you don’t bring the help Defender the one time where it gets a little is when they go to the uh the wing ISO and they bring this this the guard into the strong side dunker spot right I think there’s a way to sort of like manipulate that a little bit but even Drew and Derek they’re so good at sort of relocating out of that game one Drew had two or three baskets around the r around the rim just on wrong side dunker spot in isolation otherwise if you’re sort of like let’s say the same spacing Jason Tatum gets middle and you’re just like showing help but getting out to Shooters I’m I’m confident Jason Tatum’s gonna finish at The Rim right if you’re not going to really commit to the help um they I think they played 14 possessions of Zone from February 10th to the end of the regular season then there was the one game in the Oklahoma City Thunder series where they played like 31 possessions is Zone an option like again I think it’s ball containment it’s ball containment that’s the key to this whole thing for Dallas yeah like I it’s so funny that Steve you br you posed the question because I was actually talking to a friend about this after the game last night like I it’s tough not to send the kind of early help against Boston one just because of how good they are but because of the way that they manipulate the spacing and I have like this jayen brown possession in my head to where they go early pick and roll get a switch and Jaylen like gets there at Jones Jr to his right is Jason Tatum in the strong side corner thus PJ Washington is on him on this case to his left because the screen was just set is Chris th porzingis with Derek Lively defending him jayen Brown just beats DK Jones Jr off the dribble which to JJ’s point the containment has to be better y low man is Luca like Boston has done such a good job of removing size away from the basket that if you do want to go with the game plan of let’s switch B Dallas doubled down on their switching a highest switch rate of any game this season postseason or regular season for anyone Boston in that game for Dallas in that game too like there are more there is just a press the do better button portion to this to where you just have to guard your yard a little bit better like as we saw with some of the switches with Derek Lively in particular in the game too I think Steve already referenced some of the defensive tweaks that uh Dallas made like DK Lively being more diligent about I am shading Jason taton to left or whichever side has two players on it so if you are going to beat me you’re only going to beat me this way where there are extra bodies like you can lean more into that stuff but Boston is just so good at moving their pieces around like it kind of puts you in a position where you have to send help because if not if I win this drive it might just be Kyrie rotating down at the it might just be Josh Green rotating down at The Rim versus a Dar Lively or Daniel Gafford because of how they move the guys around so I don’t know like conceptually I agree you can probably loosen the shackles especially where Jason Tatum is you know taking making jump shots at this level right now it just hasn’t fallen for him but it’s just it’s hard not to when they can move your sze away hold on what was the G there was the Golden State Warriors in the regular season that said we’re just going to play Help defense off of uh Jaylen Brown Jay Brown yeah what if Jason kid did that off Jason Tatum and was like even when he had the ball just like gave him like a Ben Simmons treatment just shoot your jumper dude well I mean hey Jaya Brown’s the best player anyway so maybe that’s you know I’m not saying I’m not suggesting this is a real thing but I’m just saying like J J kid the Mind Games with Jay kid are very real Steve sorry to interrupt what were you gonna say Oh no you’re good I think it also the the the the scary part if you’re Dallas is Boston not only is committed to the spacing they have variants like Drew holiday putting up like a sha stat line like 26 and 11 shooting 11 to 14 not necessarily what you had on your bingo card but now is it a big Derek white three game is it an Al Horford three game does porzingis turn back up does Jason Tatum hit shots and hit drives that’s where the concern level is for me with Dallas where yes there are things you can correct to fix this but now if the problem changes what are you prepared to do about that and B Boston hasn’t cooperated as far as we’re going to bog down a lot I thought the first half it was very much 14 on the clock what are you guys doing where are we going but they corrected that and if if Boston’s not going to get in their own way it makes it tough for Dallas yeah um anything else you guys want to add from the first two games as we look forward to game three on Wednesday night I think for me it’s both a comment and a question as I think about what Dallas is trying to get to offensive particularly with like the Luc or the Kyrie pick and rolls like the pick and roll attack in general just hasn’t been very good at least by the numbers and you can kind of see again Boston trying to keep things 2v2 they’re being selective of where they’re sending help and when they’re sending it things like that with the empty side stuff in particular it’s felt very Bland it’s been very ineffective and I just kind of look at one they just have they’ll have drik Lively or someone else in the dunker spot of Lucas going into the let’s get a guard the screen for me bag have a big there which means Boston has their size at The Rim which kind of limits what you can get out of that action on top of Boston deciding to just switch sometimes I’m just kind of wondering at what point do we see when do we see some penins from Dallas when do we see something on the opposite end of the floor especially in light of the lack of corner threes that they’ve been able to generate through two games like it has been kind of weird that Dallas has been this I mean Boston has been this intentional about Tak taking away this you know taking away the lob opportunities again just generally loading up when they can and protecting the corner threes like I’m kind of waiting on that from Dallas is that something that’s popped for you when watching these first two well I I I do think they ran some off ball stuff last night for Luca that was really interesting it’s it’s a little bit like that old dirk play you know Luca on the right block he gets a pinned down from the foulon area and he can pop up top or he gets the Baseline screen on the left side and can pop out to the corner he had a corner three in the first half they ran it in game one as well Boston [ __ ] up the switch Luca missed a wide openen three at the top of the key I maybe I want some more of that for for Kyrie off the ball um you know I I I I think getting a little more movement I actually thought going into G after game one that there was some good stuff on the clear side isos I didn’t see that same sort of success in game two they did have a ton of success in game one attacking porzingis in ball screens with Luca the ball handler 11 possessions 1.6 points per possession I I don’t have the updated stats from last night with porzingis as The screeners Defender versus Luca um I think there’s stuff they can they can get to there’s matchups they can attack um you know I I I think the PJ Washington versus Derek white thing is a is a real potentially a real advantage for for Dallas um on either post-ups duckins uh he’s had a couple drives where he’s just muscled through them so there’s there’s a there’s some juice that they can get to uh Beyond just uh pick and roll and and Target hunting anything additional Steve uh the porzingis minutes against Dallas is like uh as they get like Luca plus Kyrie plus second unit intrigue me because I don’t know how much they can get to porzingis because he’s really just like okay that’s fine Maxi cber you’re okay go ahead and pop or I’m guarding a non-shooter and then he ends up protecting the rim and then Dallas doesn’t score for like 2 minutes so that’s something I’m keeping an eye on uh it was very odd to see Luca and Kyrie kind of go off with 21 points on 9 and 12 shooting but then it’s like Dallas has 11 made field goals two assists so that’s where I was like hey what do you do um and another salute to Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown when they get a big on them it’s been quick decision time like I’m going to catch I’m going to go I’m not going to I’m not going to play with it catch I’m to go and we’re going to play out of it so those will probably be my last additions okay uh all right well uh I will be traveling to Dallas later and calling uh calling games three and four in Dallas and then uh we got game five back in Boston uh a week from today uh guys always fun catching up with you and uh let’s hope we can get a [ __ ] series here let’s go let’s go would be nice would be nice all right talk to you guys soon [Music]

On this Monday’s episode of The Old Man and the Three Things, JJ Redick is joined by Nekias Duncan and Steve Jones Jr. of The Dunker Spot to break down Games 1 and 2 of the NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics (Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday) and the Dallas Mavericks (Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving) and share their takeaways.

Subscribe to The Old Man and The Three podcast w/ JJ Redick (ESPN / First Take) and Tommy Alter YouTube channel today for more NBA analysis, player interviews and highlights.