Four-time NBA champion Draymond Green has shared his forecast for this year’s highly anticipated NBA Finals clash between the Dallas Mavericks and the Boston Celtics.
Despite the Celtics boasting the best regular-season record and a recent Finals appearance in 2022, where they fell to Green’s Golden State Warriors, Green predicts a Mavericks victory in six games, propelled by the dynamic duo of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.
Green elaborated on his prediction, foreseeing a hard-fought series with Boston securing Game 1 due to adjustments by Dallas to counter their size and defensive strategy.
However, Green anticipates the Mavericks bouncing back to claim Game 2 in Boston, leveling the series at 1-1 before returning to Dallas for Games 3 and 4, where he believes the Mavericks will seize control with a 3-1 lead.
Despite a potential resurgence from Boston to take Game 5, Green envisions the Mavericks closing out the series in Game 6, propelled by Doncic’s emergence and Irving’s hunger for another championship.
Green’s insights were shared during an episode of The Draymond Green Show, where he provided a detailed analysis of the matchup and emphasized the significance of experience and determination in playoff basketball.
“I actually think Boston’s going to take Game 1 because I think it’ll take some time for Dallas to get used to that size and that length, the switching, what you’re going to do, what’s your adjustments going to be, Kyrie [Irving] and Luka [Doncic] to figure out how they going to attack that. I think that’s going to take some time and because of that I think Boston takes Game 1,” he said.
“However, I think Dallas figures it out, come back and win Game 2 in Boston. Going back to Dallas 1-1, I got them going into that place that they’ve been playing great and taking Game 3. I then have them taking Game 4.
“With Dallas with a 3-1 lead, I got Boston taking Game 5 and I got Dallas closing it in Game 6. That is my opinion. I think it’s Luka’s time. I think Kyrie want another one. I think that experience going to matter.”
Green acknowledged that Boston’s stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have gained significant experience since 2022 and expects them to play well in the Finals, but still have the Mavericks prevailing.
