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It has been a week since the NBA wrapped up and congratulations to the Boston Celtics winning their 18th championship (I am happy to see Al Horford win a title) by defeating the Mavericks in five games which was not my 7-game prediction I made (laughs). So instead of doing a basic review of the series I decided to try something different and grade some of the players’ performance in the finals so, let us start with the Dallas Mavericks.
Dallas Mavericks Player Grades
Luka Doncic: B-
Despite being the best player in this series, Luka Doncic showed up in every game and went down fighting but, Doncic poorly timed meltdown in game three fouling out with time left to come back and win was huge. All postseason Doncic and his bickering with the refs certainly was an issue and was a vital in the game 3 loss, that along with his conditioning concerns are why he got the B- for this NBA finals and is a learning experience for him and Mavs to help get back to this stage.
Kyrie Irving: C-
Kyrie Irving certainly redeemed himself a little bit this postseason reminding us how entertaining he can be as a player and not a polarizing figure. However his performance in these finals was disappointing especially the games in Boston where it seemed like the crowd and stage got the best of him. Game four was probably his best game in the series but Kyrie not showing up for most of this final was a big part in Dallas not extending the series let alone win it.
Dereck Lively II: B
The two big from Dallas certainly did not have an impact in the finals like they did in the previous two rounds but Dereck Lively absolutely showed some promise and grit after the first two games that were rocky. Lively played well in game 3 and 4 especially game four where he was a force but if the Mavericks wanted a bright spot nit named Luka Doncic, then it certainly was Lively II.
PJ Washington & Derrick Jones Jr: D
Hate being so harsh but the other reason Dallas lost these finals is the disappearance of PJ Washington and Derrick Jones Jr. Both forwards were big parts for why Dallas handled Minnesota in the western conference finals but didn’t mean much in the finals yes, it’s because Boston has better perimeter players that didn’t make it easy for them but to completely fall off in the finals was not acceptable and hopefully will grow from this series.
Boston Celtics Player Grades
Jaylen Brown: A
If there was a human being to embody the phrase “Money well spent” it has to be Jaylen Brown, who everyone doubted after his massive extension but certainly lived up to that and more winning the conference finals MVP and finals MVP along with being the driving force for this Celtics championship is why he gets an A not only for these finals but for his season as well.
Jrue Holiday & Derrick White: A-
The backcourt of Holiday and White certainly were worth the trust and money put into them as that large and versatile duo. All season the duo certainly kept this dominant season on track and certainly helped win these finals which cannot be overlooked and why going forward they will be around for a bit longer in Boston.
Jayson Tatum: B
We now can get to the elephant in the room, Jayson Tatum who is viewed as the best player on the Celtics, certainly going into these finals. However, Tatum did not live up to that and just played well. Now I have been a pro Jaylen guy, but Tatum did not bomb in these finals just did not have coming out performance we expected but got from Brown instead, Tatum is a top seven player no question but just left people wanting more from him in the finals hence his grade.
Kristaps Porzingis: C
Last but not least is Kristaps Porzingis, who has not seen the whole postseason until game one where he appears from tunnel moments before tip-off which put that Boston crowd into a frenzy. But his impact in the limited time he played in the first two games of the finals was the thing that shifted the finals. Yet his lack of availability cannot be ignored as much as Celtic nation and Boston propaganda want it to mean more it simply cannot because he did not play in the other three games, so limited time in just two games results in Porzingis grade here.
