For the 18th time in franchise history, the Boston Celtics are NBA champions.
The Celtics closed the first quarter of Monday’s NBA Finals Game 5 on a 9-0 run and never looked back en route to a dominant 106-88 win over the Dallas Mavericks. The win secured a 4-1 win in the NBA Finals and the franchise’s first title since 2008.
The Celtics set the tone from the opening tip as they took the floor for the first time in these Finals wearing their classic green jerseys. They proceeded to put on a performance worthy of those colors. It was also worthy of a team that rolled to an NBA-best 64 wins in the regular season and produced advanced metrics that rank among the best in league history.
They did it on Monday with defense. They did it with 3s. They did it with stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown leading the way. It was an optimal conclusion to the Celtics season.
The Gotham Reporter 