The Boston Celtics are 2-0 ahead of the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals. They have held Jason Kidd’s team to under 100 points in both outings, despite Dallas boasting an elite guard pairing of Luka Doncic and Jrue Holiday. As such, the Celtics are receiving significant praise for their work on the defensive end.
When speaking to the media during his postgame news conference, Jaylen Brown credited his team’s hustle and hard work with their first two wins over the Mavericks. He did, however, call on his team to continue improving their defensive performance as they head on the road for the next two games.
“Just effort plays,” Brown said. “I think tonight we weren’t as crisp defensively. It was a lot of missed communications out there, a lot of stuff that we gave up that we didn’t give up in the first game. So I think we got to be better in that regard. But I just think our effort has been the key, just the mentality, picking a guy up full court, stuff like that. It just wears on them over time. But I think we need to be more crisp going into the next two games.”
Brown has been an integral piece of Boston’s defensive system. His willingness to step up and operate as the primary point-of-attack defender has been a welcomed boost to the Celtics’ perimeter defense, especially when dealing with Doncic.
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Boston will undoubtedly be hoping their defensive dominance can continue throughout the remainder of the NBA finals.
If they can keep holding the Mavericks to under 100 points, it’s hard to envision the series going beyond five games.
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