Tatum was a rebound shy of a triple double. Ryen Russillo said Tatum was garbage last night. Legs correctly stated here that Tatum was actually really good in Game 2 despite poor shooting. I agreed with the latter assessment.
He’s shooting poorly not playing poorly. He’s been the best passer and rebounder in the series, he’s just seeing too many bodies to be the leading scorer.
Best basketball pod in the game right now I can't believe Gilbert arenas podcast gets so many views. Makes sense why ball discourse is the way it is though
Yall gotta chill. This content is way better than whatever espn provides, but you guys keep being disrespectful. Legs being wrong isn’t a personal thing lol. He is the best analyst currently and fun to listen to.
Hey, don't gotta tell me! He called my team so bad to watch they needed a disclaimer before games so young minds don't assume that's how the game is supposed to be played, but I still love his brutal honesty and raw passion for the sport along with his resume and of course, being a tape trader legend from his 1996 All-star weekend showing with the 3 point shootout. I wore that VHS OUT as a kid.
He prolly the best analyst for casuals lmao this Dallas pick was a complete joke and the only reason he chose them was because he was the only person that said they could make the finals earlier in the season and he was trying to stick to his “pick.” Anybody, I repeat, anybody that had Dallas over Boston in these NBA finals do not know as much basketball as they or particularly you think they do LOOOOOOOL
Legler focusing so much on the Dallas role players “just missing shots” when they aren’t good shooters, they just got hot for a few games earlier in the playoffs, they are playing more like they usually do in these Finals
@@CrbennettxNo he’s not. A player who is “a bucket” has to have a well rounded offensive game. As you’ve seen, the Celtics have almost literally been leaving him wide open for above-the-break threes because they know precisely that he isn’t “a bucket”. Guy played for one of the worst teams in the NBA this year (Charlotte) for a reason.
Lies they’ve been hitting shots since the playoffs started but now they aren’t. Pj is a decent shooter, Tim is a good shooter, Josh green, exum, kyrie, and Luka. They have plenty of guys who can knock down shots but they just aren’t and that’s really been the difference.
@@ILLWill1027 1) PJ is a decent shooter from the corners. Boston is not allowing corner 3s. 2) Tim Hardaway hasn't played a second because he fell out of the rotation because he couldn't guard a traffic cone. 3) No one else you mentioned is better than an average shooter and they all are much worse above the break than below the break, and that's where Boston is daring them to shoot.
That’s fair, but the main issues are: 1. He had been anointed as being a borderline all-star (admittedly by the uninformed media) and; 2. He has made some pretty confident proclamations before game 2
@@phantom_isle Nobody called him a star of any kind. He was however said to be one of the most mature young players by several media, and his maturity does show limits in this series so far.
Yep. Luka is awesome, but he can only do so much, especially when Boston is making it a point to attack him on the other end. No one should be surprised that he's wearing down and being less effective as the games go on.
@franklinrodriguez6697 THJ shot has been MIA since b4 his leg injury...not to mention his lack of defense....but it would be nice if he would step-up and make some shots
It’s not about depth, it’s that their starting 5, specifically 1-4, can all switch on Doncic or Kyrie and be effective on defense. Then when they are on offense, all of those guys can hurt Doncic with speed and quickness, and they hurt Kyrie with length and strength.
Leglert hasn't figured out yet that Kyrie hasn't been the guy he was in his first few years for long time now, especially against the Celtics. His undying faith in this guy has been betrayed time and again, yet his still somehow believes he's going to turn into the player he hasn't been for years. The Celtics have some really good defenders, hasn't he figured this out yet? Holliday, White, Tatum, Brown, Porzingis, Horford, these guys all know how to play defense at a high level, doesn't he recognize this yet in any way shape or form? He's still in denial omg, someone call 911 for this dude.
Kyrie got cursed by disrespecting the leprechaun. How else can you explain kai’s erratic gameplay and shody shot judgement. He is a fraction of himself which does not make sense given his amazing skills and experience on the big stage. It could only be the karma brought about doing lucky wrong.
These commentators failed to mention the elephant in the room which is Doncic lack of defense. Celtics attacked him all game long and went right around him, which collapsed the Mavs defense. Only Brian Windhorst commentated on it. Glaring pass.
@@psychobluesfxtI'm not sure how much that matters. He's still getting his buckets. He's never been a good defender even though he became serviceable. But it's different against the Celtics because there's no where to hide on defense. All 5 players in the game for the Celtics are a threat to score, and they all play defense, and 4 of them can hit from outside and take you off the dribble. Mavs missing 3s, but the Celtics missed tons of 3s as well.
Mavs missed more wide open 3s though plus were 58% FT% with like 6 mins left in game. Yes Boston missed many threes as well, but Mavs missed more wide open I thought. Plus FT% was huge difference. Non Luka from 3 this series so far are horrific and many are open. Lively (who I like and wanted my pacers to draft at 7 over Walker…it was actually lively or coulibaly Whitmore Wallace I’d be happy with honestly at 7 over Jarace Walker) has looked WAY worse this series then vs OKC Minnesota. Part of me wonders if it’s from the neck injuries. It’s def the stage, but he doesn’t look nearly the same.
Luka 38% from 3s first 2 games (8-21), rest of Mavs 15.6% (5-32 with many WIDE OPEN) + FT% huge diff in this series not being 1-1 going back to Mavs. Kyrie PJ DJjr Kleber Green Hardy 4/30 from 3 (13%!) Game 2 non Luka players 2-17 from 3 (11.7%) with many wide open. Lively since coming back from the head injury hasn’t looked close to the same as before the head/neck injury. He was looking good before that being all over the place on defense and offensive rebounds. Porzingis is def huge key for Celtics as without him vs my Pacers (missing Haliburton 2.3/4 games + no Mathurin which hurt a lot with how bad Sheppard was playing/shooting) and first 3 games of Cavs series they didn’t look nearly as good. My Pacers essentially gave away not being up 3-1 or at worst down 2-2 going back to Boston. That kinda tricked me into liking Mavs +190 bc the value. I thought Porzingis would play/look rusty or maybe not healthy, but he’s been mostly GREAT and the x-factor (dope roster to go along with that for sure too, but he’s an X factor coming off bench especially game 1 but even game 2 he was +12 in 23 mins game 2 and +13 in 21 mins game 2. When he’s off the court game 2 Celtics were -5. When he was off the court game 1 they were only +5 in 18 point win. So they’re even +0 when Porzingis not on the court so far and that’s with Mavs shooting horrid from 3/FTs both games 1 & 2. Jrue Holiday has been awesome so far this series! Through 2 games he or Jaylen Finals MVP. GameScore so far for Celtics Jrue 21, Jaylen 18.2, Derrick White/Porzingis 13.9, Tatum 11.0, Horford 9.6. Having 6 players essentially 10-21 GameScore shows very good depth 1-6 as that’s very rare for a team. Jrue ORtg so far 166 and 103 DRtg! Porzingis 134 & 98! Jaylen 111 and 98 White 119 & 102 Tatum ORtg 89 and 104 DRtg! Jrue 77 TS% insane (65/44/100 splits)! Porzingis 71 TS% crazy too! Meanwhile Luka 21.9, Washington/Gafford 11.5 then their next 3 guys 4.5 to 6.7 game score! Kyrie & Lively diff from western conf playoffs being good vs finals both being 🚮huge (Lively hasn’t looked the same since head/neck injury as before that he looked like one of the best bigs in the playoffs and his Net rating +/- and OnOff Net rating #1 in NBA showed with elite per minute stats too). Still can’t believe my Pacers drafted Hansbrough over Jrue Holiday (who I wanted badly🤬)
Agreed. Luka has performed fine, not the greatest for his potential, but still fine, but most other Mavs have played like bums. The Celtics' defense definitely has a role in this, but it's also about most Mavs not showing up. Quite upsetting. Meanwhile, because of their "depth" the Celtics don't have to rely on a consistent superstar performance, as there will always be either 2 of 5 guys stepping up and the others doing useful work too even if their shooting is cold, like Tatum. The Celtics have become a very good team over the years, and they're doing it without a actual superstar.
Can’t we just say it? Boston is the better team. They have been all year . It is what it is. These Dallas needs this or that. Boston isn’t playing at an optimal level either. They’re just deeper.
That's because if they brought that up as much as they do with the home games, they would have to admit that it's a high possibility of a sweep. And there's no way they would do that to their Golden Boy Luka
I actually would love to talk about how the Celtics have played away games in this year's playoffs. 6-0 baby! Before you bring up previous years just remember that those don't count this year.
Let me just use the phrase that's been put on Boston by the biased national media throughout this playoffs: "they haven't played anybody". Put THAT label on Dallas. They haven't played a real TEAM on their way to the Finals. People like to say that the East is weak(er) than the West. However, Boston is NOT weak. Dallas is now realizing that Clippers, Thunders, Timberwolves are not on the Celtics level.
Surprised the you guys expect the role players to make their open 3s. The role players are not really pure shooters like Duncan Robinson, Grayson Allen, or the likes of Kyle Korver. PJ Washington, Derick Jones, or J. Green are not pure shooters, they can shoot sometimes but they're not 3 pt. specialists so they're hit and miss but on this playoffs, it's more about misses more.
Kyrie missing open shots fair enough but PJ shot 32% on threes. Green is a low volume guy. Jones is 34% and 31% career. Maxi has one arm. These are bad shooters missing above the break threes. I’m not sure why it’s surprising.
As a Luka fan it is indeed bananas that his poor defense is often overlooked. It’s like he can’t be bothered to improve defensively, leave that less rewarding work to the rest of the squad 😂
Too much of the national media just looks at which team has the best player, and assume that team has the advantage. Luka, Luka, Luka, blah, blah... He's great, I get it, but not every best player is Jordan and can win single-handedly. You still need more than one guy. It seems as if too many people slept through the regular season, where the Celtics were the best team in the League wire-to-wire, and they are now 14-2 in the postseason. They are stronger than Dallas 3 through 8.
Whatever. Rank Irving wherever you want. Don't care. Point is the Celtics are balanced and deeper. And Jordan was much more capable of being the number one difference between a title and not winning it. He won three, then the two years he played baseball they didn't win, then they won three more when he got back. Doncic isn't that kind of player.
@@peteg475 duh. Everyone with eyes can see the Celtics are deeper. Obvious point. Jordan was the tipping point from a team being good and being champions. That team didn’t win a title but still won 55 games and made it to the East semis without him. I’m just saying he had help that’s all
Celtics ability to have all 5 guys switch on defense is giving guys like Kyrie, Gafford, Lively, Washington a ton of problems. Luka needed 20+ shots for a inffeciet game 1. Game 2 he started great in the first half. Gassed out which is a conditional issue in the second half. Worst, part also Luka getting problems with the trap and help defense. Turn the ball over 8 times in game 2 which the most of any player in the game. Eventhough Mavs climb back to a short distance, Celts have their numbers and Mavs hasn't adjusted to Celtics switch defense. The offense that runs through Luka all the time is taking a toll. Would not mind switching the offense to a more pass and move to get different switches and mismatches because the whole heavy pick n roll isn't working and making Luka work 2x more to get a good bucket. It's unsustainable for this series. Celts in 5 or sweep. Kidd hasn't adjusted anything. Lively and Gafford might not play no more and they need more shooting like Kleiber or Hardway Jr.
Bingo. This is the key difference between the “best defense in the NBA (Minnesota)” and the Celtics. This ties into why Kyrie has struggled relative to the Wolves series (aside from him having a mental block about playing against Boston) - he can’t hunt matchups. Being able to hunt matchups against guys like Gobert, KAT etc. provided a pressure release valve for Kyrie.
@@markbantz9699 I think that's bad grammar. I looked it up, conditional is spelled correctly. It's just the wrong word. However, scale!z is not a spelling of any word. I guess you're one of the half that can't spell or even know the difference between spelling and grammar. 😂😂
Across the board the ESPN analysts overlook the fact that Kyrie Irving spent that short ill-fated time in Boston and they figured out a lot of his moves... And although they won't say it and they take the high road, they're pissed that he set them back a couple of years and deprived them of possible titles
Regarding Kyrie second guessing himself, I think Legler is neglecting the fact that Kyrie had his shot blocked on multiple occasions in this series (in the mid range as well) , especially when switched. This wasn't the case vs slow footed bigs in Minnesota. So of course Irving is second guessing himself
A lot of people talking shit about the Mavs but I believe this team can still turn it around. Hard to imagine Kyrie and the role players don't improve at home. Plus Luka has another level he can get to. The Mavs were up 2-0 on the Heat in 06 and lost in 6 games. It can be done
It will be so funny if Kyrie figures it out at home but the Celtics actually have a good shooting night. This one was only in reach because Boston missed 75% of their threes, mostly open or wide open threes. They’ve generated like 36 wide open threes over the last two games, not to mention open ones.
I'm telling you right now this series is going to be exactly like the Mavs vs Suns series 2 years ago. Dallas will fashionably turn it up at home and completely defend home court. It will go to a crazy game 7 and will depend on who plays better out of JB/JT and Luka/Kai.
16:35 Luka has done enough offensively but his defense is atrocious. Guys are driving right passed him and it’s leading to open shots. The Mavs are lucky the Celtics shot 25% from 3 last night. It could’ve been a 15-20 point blowout.
@@michaelahurt that should tell you something 😂 Those teams failed to put Luka in pick and roll situations so their best offensive players could attack him and drive right past him to create open looks for their teammates 🤷🏼♂️ his defense is really bad.
@@iampadrino They actually didn't. They did the exact same thing. But Boston has 5 shooters. Those teams had 3-4 so Dallas, specifically Lively and Gafford, could just ignore someone and they could all loaf up against the star But you can't do that against Boston. Especially against KP because he destroys smaller players on switches They are still bringing help against Tatum but when they do he finds a wide open 38%+ shooter instead of Josh Giddey or Jaden McDaniels
They could’ve won if Luka shot more then two shots in the 2nd half to. Credit to Boston, but Dallas looks like they don’t even give a shit. That first quarter run in the first game spooked them man
Let’s be real here. If PJJ was a Celtic, would he be the seventh best Celtic?? If Lively or Gafford played in Boston would they even crack the rotation?? Dallas looked bad because they’re not very good.
Doncic had been playing outstanding defense, best in his career, he was #1 in opponents fg% against, steals and deflections among all players in the playoffs coming into this series. But Kyrie was backing him up with some great defense of his own and putting up some good to great offensive numbers. This series hes been a no show and because Lukas focus has to be as the primary scorer he is looking to score every play and he's weary of getting into foul trouble as their only reliable and viable scoring option. Kyrie is KEY, period end of discussion, to turning this series around. His involvement and success will open up the floor for the supporting cast. That's this teams design and it's path to success otherwise they're done.
Did anyone else think this would be a bad series for dallas bc once ik they were going to play right away i knew gafford and lively were basically going to be a none factor bc boston requires you to gurd away from the basket and then I thought about PH and DJJ and I was like okay boston can close you out better than minnesota can and from there I was like what challenges does dallas offer boston and I couldn’t think of any.
Funny how that easy path through the east gave the Celtics tougher games even loses at home, now they go on the road where they've been undefeated but no one seems to mention that. They seem to find talking points that favor the Mavs not the best team all year the Boston Celtics.
You guys understand basketball way better than any other so called "analysts". Meanwhile Russilo thinks Tatum played an awful game. Doesn't even understand the difference between a bad scoring game and a bad game.
“Cross matching doesn’t matter” that is the whole reason Dallas hasn’t been able to get easy looks like lobs. If you call up Lively/Gafford it’s Tatum just switching onto you
Dallas been gettin cooked on both ends of the court. Kyrie has been trash, role players disappeared. The mavs have no offensive flow...Its luka doing too much and thats about it. They gotta figure something out otherwise its a sweep. Give Boston credit, all their guys are making plays.
Also legs I don’t think the Celtics change their defense if kyrie gets going. I think they are going to play kyrie and Luka straight up and live with it, and then limit the others, because there isn’t a single other really good creator in that lineup. The one they do have they will not play (Tim hardaway) because he is such a defensive liability. Joe mazulla I think realizes that kyrie and Luka could combine for 80, but he could hold the rest of team under 30. Dallas supporting cast is not as good as you think, they play well within the system, but that system has been foiled by this Celtics team. There are no lobs and corner 3s that was their formula for winning, for getting points for their role players; not just easy baskets, but the easiest of baskets.
No one talks about pace. Boston learned from the pacers series. Celtics push the ball and do not relent. Luka and kyrie can't keep up for 48 min. Watch them with their hand on their knees in the 4th.
This is Eastern basketball, defense, against West basketball, offense. Defense wins championship. The Lakers did not beat the Celtics for years until in the 80's the finally had a defensive presence. All these announcers have been beguiled by great offensive players and not seen a great defensive team who can also score when necessary. Wednesday night: Time to show Greatness!
I'm just tired of the childish tyranny of individualism. After all and despite all being said, basketball is a team sport. We should be thankfull the Celtics are bringing back the essence of hooping: relations matter clearly more than indivual performances.
Legs the math doesn’t work. This is mostly Boston limiting Dallas as opposed to them just sucking. If Luka and kyrie combine for 60 every night it’s most likely not enough, because you’ll need 50 other points and I don’t think you get pj Washington and Derrick jones jr to combine for 30 consistently or Dereck lively and Daniel gafford to combine for 20 consistenly. That’s just to reach 110, the Celtics have played a B and C+ in their two games offensively and they scored 107 (took the starters out with 3 minutes left), and 105. If we get a B+/A- offensive game from the Celtics they get to 115-120, and mavs can’t match that output against this Celtics defense. We are going to get a game where the celts go nuclear on offense.
Kyrie not showing up vs Boston is nothing new a few years ago Boston swept kyrie vs the nets he also wasn’t that good in that series also I think he had a great game 1 and than he no showed 3 straight games
Boston has certainly looked like the better team. Lots of ridiculous commentary on here. Legler’s analysis is great. Keep in mind, during the regular season… Celtics versus Denver 0-2, Celtics versus Thunder 1 - 1, but the second game was end of season didn’t matter. Celtics versus Timberwolves 1-1 Celtics versus Clippers 1-1 Also keep in mind that Phoenix was 64-18 in 2022, Mavs in seven
Luka played well last game, and decent the first game. He gotta step up his effort on defence tho, he only really gave it all in the fourth I feel like, and then neither brown or tatum was really scoring on him. Stop the doubles, fix the rotation issues, and kyrie gotta do SOMETHING man.
Gafford was okay. Kleber took minutes from him and did pure garbage with it. This guy should not step in for the rest of the finals. BIG MISTAKE from Kidd to bring him back. Replace Kleber's minutes with Gafford's, have Luka cut a couple of turnovers, make a couple of these missed free throws and one of these bum-looking Mavs to at least hit 1 or 2 open 3s, and the series would be 1-1, because the Celtics did not play their best neither. Huge missed opportunity.
Legler never giving boston any credit because he picked the mavs to win lol kyrie is struggling because celtics have a way better perimeter d than minny. No way around it
Mavs are not making the 3 almost only luka hits 3's .Even tho mavs create better shot and contest better shots than boston on defense .If they keept this up but hit 3's they win games
Lost a lot of respect for Leggert for his disasterous analysis of the series going into this. It took two wins from them for him to even acknowledge Boston. I thought he was better than the rest of the national media talking heads who went with the stupid-ass narrative that the Celtics hadn't been tested (they were, by Indiana) and forgot about a couple of guys named Porzingis and Jaylen Brown. What a fucking disaster.
Luka doncic is 6 ft 8 235 lbs, gafford is 6 ft 11 265 lbs, pj Washington is 6 ft 8 240 lbs, lively is 7 ft 1 255 lbs, guys that size don't end up on the floor unless they got fouled, the refs refuse to call a foul on Boston... game 1 dallas had 8 minutes of no calls go their way, game 2 they had 6 minutes of no calls go their way... I guess Boston fans and the refs expect us to all believe that jeryatrch Al horford and toothpick tingus pingus are better rim protectors than Shaq and Hakeem... gtfo.
Tim is twisting himself into a pretzel and trying really hard to say it is not Celtics defense that is turning the Mavericks players into turnips. By the way Celtics are undefeated on the road (just saying) Even Luka who started both games great was gassed by the fourth quarter. The fact is Celtics defense is causing the Mavericks players except for Luka to have a crisis of confidence. Celts have beaten Mavericks 3 times since their season changing trade, and in all of them Luka has had 30+ points including 2 triple doubles (he also had a triple double when Celtics beat them 119-110 in Dallas on 1/22/2024). This is a BAD matchup for Dallas. 2 more to Banner #18. ☘️☘️☘️☘️💚💚💚💚🍀🍀🍀🍀 #18
Legler’s got that dawg with him
Tatum was a rebound shy of a triple double. Ryen Russillo said Tatum was garbage last night. Legs correctly stated here that Tatum was actually really good in Game 2 despite poor shooting. I agreed with the latter assessment.
One of the very few who called that latter point I agree
Ryan Is a clown
Tatum was awful in the first qtr.
He’s shooting poorly not playing poorly. He’s been the best passer and rebounder in the series, he’s just seeing too many bodies to be the leading scorer.
@@davidschultz2198Tatum had 5 assists and no turnovers in the first quarter. He shot poorly. He played well.
This is a great pod. Should have way more views.
Thank you!
Best basketball pod in the game right now
I can't believe Gilbert arenas podcast gets so many views. Makes sense why ball discourse is the way it is though
Better audio quality would help @@ALLCITY_NBA
Tim still the best analyst. He breaks it down evenly w/o the drama
Legler going through extraordinary lengths to avoid giving the Celtics any credit per usual.
Are we listening to the same podcast? He clearly gave plenty of credit to the celtics. American sports fan can be so weird.
Love the way Boston has played on both sides. Surprised it's been this "easy." Happy if Boston can win a title.
Yall gotta chill. This content is way better than whatever espn provides, but you guys keep being disrespectful. Legs being wrong isn’t a personal thing lol. He is the best analyst currently and fun to listen to.
Hey, don't gotta tell me! He called my team so bad to watch they needed a disclaimer before games so young minds don't assume that's how the game is supposed to be played, but I still love his brutal honesty and raw passion for the sport along with his resume and of course, being a tape trader legend from his 1996 All-star weekend showing with the 3 point shootout. I wore that VHS OUT as a kid.
He is the best analyst according to your opinion and your limited knowledge of the game lmao
He prolly the best analyst for casuals lmao this Dallas pick was a complete joke and the only reason he chose them was because he was the only person that said they could make the finals earlier in the season and he was trying to stick to his “pick.” Anybody, I repeat, anybody that had Dallas over Boston in these NBA finals do not know as much basketball as they or particularly you think they do LOOOOOOOL
@@GurtonBuster07 10 of the 18 ESPN "experts" picked Dallas and 7 of them picked Dallas in 6.
Jason Timpf is better than Legler. His show is called Hoops tonight on RUclips
Legler focusing so much on the Dallas role players “just missing shots” when they aren’t good shooters, they just got hot for a few games earlier in the playoffs, they are playing more like they usually do in these Finals
PJ is a bucket
@@CrbennettxNo he’s not. A player who is “a bucket” has to have a well rounded offensive game.
As you’ve seen, the Celtics have almost literally been leaving him wide open for above-the-break threes because they know precisely that he isn’t “a bucket”.
Guy played for one of the worst teams in the NBA this year (Charlotte) for a reason.
Lies they’ve been hitting shots since the playoffs started but now they aren’t. Pj is a decent shooter, Tim is a good shooter, Josh green, exum, kyrie, and Luka. They have plenty of guys who can knock down shots but they just aren’t and that’s really been the difference.
@@ILLWill1027
1) PJ is a decent shooter from the corners. Boston is not allowing corner 3s.
2) Tim Hardaway hasn't played a second because he fell out of the rotation because he couldn't guard a traffic cone.
3) No one else you mentioned is better than an average shooter and they all are much worse above the break than below the break, and that's where Boston is daring them to shoot.
@@Crbennettx😂😂😂 hayyyl no he isn't
Lively is a rookie man, why are people giving him so much crap? This is coming from a Celtics fan.
That’s fair, but the main issues are:
1. He had been anointed as being a borderline all-star (admittedly by the uninformed media) and;
2. He has made some pretty confident proclamations before game 2
@@jayem8981no one has ever said he was a borderline all star
@@MaximusR93maybe not "all star" but people were absolutely calling him a "young star"
I think Kleber was worse.
@@phantom_isle Nobody called him a star of any kind. He was however said to be one of the most mature young players by several media, and his maturity does show limits in this series so far.
These analysts do not seem to understand the depth of Celtics. Dallas has only 2 great players but Luca cannot get it done
Yo what has happened to Tim Hardaway he is supposed to be a knock down shooter and scoring threat of the bench
@@Holdemnicely6969 he couldn't defend a traffic cone so he's fallen out of the rotation.
Yep. Luka is awesome, but he can only do so much, especially when Boston is making it a point to attack him on the other end. No one should be surprised that he's wearing down and being less effective as the games go on.
@franklinrodriguez6697 THJ shot has been MIA since b4 his leg injury...not to mention his lack of defense....but it would be nice if he would step-up and make some shots
It’s not about depth, it’s that their starting 5, specifically 1-4, can all switch on Doncic or Kyrie and be effective on defense. Then when they are on offense, all of those guys can hurt Doncic with speed and quickness, and they hurt Kyrie with length and strength.
Leglert hasn't figured out yet that Kyrie hasn't been the guy he was in his first few years for long time now, especially against the Celtics. His undying faith in this guy has been betrayed time and again, yet his still somehow believes he's going to turn into the player he hasn't been for years. The Celtics have some really good defenders, hasn't he figured this out yet? Holliday, White, Tatum, Brown, Porzingis, Horford, these guys all know how to play defense at a high level, doesn't he recognize this yet in any way shape or form? He's still in denial omg, someone call 911 for this dude.
Since Kyrie left the Celtics he is 0-12 against them. That's almost impossible.
@@peteg475he's a fraud with a crossover dribble
Kyrie is the same player. He gets zero calls now that he doesn’t play for the Celtics.
Kyrie got cursed by disrespecting the leprechaun. How else can you explain kai’s erratic gameplay and shody shot judgement. He is a fraction of himself which does not make sense given his amazing skills and experience on the big stage. It could only be the karma brought about doing lucky wrong.
@@rameses2460 the season didn’t start game one of the finals. You don’t watch
Don't like Legler for failing to see how stacked and complete Boston is ALL SEASON LONG.
Tim picking Dallas makes me doubt his bb iq
nah fr, I thought he was one of the best but now I'm second guessing everything. like what does he see that clearly isn't there?
Legler didn't want to give them any credit..
He always give credit where it’s. What a fanboy you are. Plus your comprehension is on the end of the scale!z😂😂
When Kyrie shot like this for the Celtics against Milwaukee a few years ago, did Legler miss that?
Dallas would love to have Dirk out there
These commentators failed to mention the elephant in the room which is Doncic lack of defense. Celtics attacked him all game long and went right around him, which collapsed the Mavs defense. Only Brian Windhorst commentated on it. Glaring pass.
Yeah. Doncic is hurt right? It’s too easy for Boston to penetrate the D.
Luka is also fighting through like 3-4 different injuries. This is where Dallas needs to adjust accordingly with the rotation.
@@psychobluesfxtI'm not sure how much that matters. He's still getting his buckets. He's never been a good defender even though he became serviceable. But it's different against the Celtics because there's no where to hide on defense. All 5 players in the game for the Celtics are a threat to score, and they all play defense, and 4 of them can hit from outside and take you off the dribble. Mavs missing 3s, but the Celtics missed tons of 3s as well.
Well if he's Scoring ALL THE POINTS CAN'T SOMEONE ELSE PLAY DEFENSE 🚩 SINCE NO ONE IS SCORING BESIDES HIM 💯
Mavs missed more wide open 3s though plus were 58% FT% with like 6 mins left in game. Yes Boston missed many threes as well, but Mavs missed more wide open I thought. Plus FT% was huge difference.
Non Luka from 3 this series so far are horrific and many are open. Lively (who I like and wanted my pacers to draft at 7 over Walker…it was actually lively or coulibaly Whitmore Wallace I’d be happy with honestly at 7 over Jarace Walker) has looked WAY worse this series then vs OKC Minnesota. Part of me wonders if it’s from the neck injuries. It’s def the stage, but he doesn’t look nearly the same.
Luka 38% from 3s first 2 games (8-21), rest of Mavs 15.6% (5-32 with many WIDE OPEN) + FT% huge diff in this series not being 1-1 going back to Mavs.
Kyrie PJ DJjr Kleber Green Hardy 4/30 from 3 (13%!)
Game 2 non Luka players 2-17 from 3 (11.7%) with many wide open.
Lively since coming back from the head injury hasn’t looked close to the same as before the head/neck injury. He was looking good before that being all over the place on defense and offensive rebounds.
Porzingis is def huge key for Celtics as without him vs my Pacers (missing Haliburton 2.3/4 games + no Mathurin which hurt a lot with how bad Sheppard was playing/shooting) and first 3 games of Cavs series they didn’t look nearly as good. My Pacers essentially gave away not being up 3-1 or at worst down 2-2 going back to Boston. That kinda tricked me into liking Mavs +190 bc the value. I thought Porzingis would play/look rusty or maybe not healthy, but he’s been mostly GREAT and the x-factor (dope roster to go along with that for sure too, but he’s an X factor coming off bench especially game 1 but even game 2 he was +12 in 23 mins game 2 and +13 in 21 mins game 2.
When he’s off the court game 2 Celtics were -5. When he was off the court game 1 they were only +5 in 18 point win. So they’re even +0 when Porzingis not on the court so far and that’s with Mavs shooting horrid from 3/FTs both games 1 & 2.
Jrue Holiday has been awesome so far this series! Through 2 games he or Jaylen Finals MVP. GameScore so far for Celtics Jrue 21, Jaylen 18.2, Derrick White/Porzingis 13.9, Tatum 11.0, Horford 9.6. Having 6 players essentially 10-21 GameScore shows very good depth 1-6 as that’s very rare for a team.
Jrue ORtg so far 166 and 103 DRtg!
Porzingis 134 & 98!
Jaylen 111 and 98
White 119 & 102
Tatum ORtg 89 and 104 DRtg!
Jrue 77 TS% insane (65/44/100 splits)!
Porzingis 71 TS% crazy too!
Meanwhile Luka 21.9, Washington/Gafford 11.5 then their next 3 guys 4.5 to 6.7 game score! Kyrie & Lively diff from western conf playoffs being good vs finals both being 🚮huge (Lively hasn’t looked the same since head/neck injury as before that he looked like one of the best bigs in the playoffs and his Net rating +/- and OnOff Net rating #1 in NBA showed with elite per minute stats too).
Still can’t believe my Pacers drafted Hansbrough over Jrue Holiday (who I wanted badly🤬)
Agreed. Luka has performed fine, not the greatest for his potential, but still fine, but most other Mavs have played like bums. The Celtics' defense definitely has a role in this, but it's also about most Mavs not showing up. Quite upsetting. Meanwhile, because of their "depth" the Celtics don't have to rely on a consistent superstar performance, as there will always be either 2 of 5 guys stepping up and the others doing useful work too even if their shooting is cold, like Tatum. The Celtics have become a very good team over the years, and they're doing it without a actual superstar.
Legs is super impressed by Tatums aggressiveness towards grabbing balls
Can’t we just say it? Boston is the better team. They have been all year . It is what it is. These Dallas needs this or that. Boston isn’t playing at an optimal level either. They’re just deeper.
Everyone loves to talk about how Boston has played at home over the last three years but, not how they play away games…
That's because if they brought that up as much as they do with the home games, they would have to admit that it's a high possibility of a sweep. And there's no way they would do that to their Golden Boy Luka
FACTS 🤦
I actually would love to talk about how the Celtics have played away games in this year's playoffs. 6-0 baby! Before you bring up previous years just remember that those don't count this year.
undefeated on the road in the playoffs 🥱☘️
@@jay_bird83126dont they shoot better at home?
This Boston team has 14 team wins!🍀🍀🍀🍀
14 and 2 in the playoff ??
Or 14 and 3
Let me just use the phrase that's been put on Boston by the biased national media throughout this playoffs: "they haven't played anybody". Put THAT label on Dallas. They haven't played a real TEAM on their way to the Finals. People like to say that the East is weak(er) than the West. However, Boston is NOT weak. Dallas is now realizing that Clippers, Thunders, Timberwolves are not on the Celtics level.
The two seed in the east would have been a play-in team in the west
@@mikemcc8315 Yes. That's why I said the East is weak, but Boston is not weak. The rest of the East is not as good as the rest of the West.
With the losses iin 2022 and 2023 the Celtics feels less pressure playing road games.
Tatum and JB might go crazy
Surprised the you guys expect the role players to make their open 3s. The role players are not really pure shooters like Duncan Robinson, Grayson Allen, or the likes of Kyle Korver. PJ Washington, Derick Jones, or J. Green are not pure shooters, they can shoot sometimes but they're not 3 pt. specialists so they're hit and miss but on this playoffs, it's more about misses more.
Because they are NBA players...
Kyrie missing open shots fair enough but PJ shot 32% on threes. Green is a low volume guy. Jones is 34% and 31% career. Maxi has one arm.
These are bad shooters missing above the break threes. I’m not sure why it’s surprising.
after what we have all seen in the last two games, maybe its time to stop saying that the T Wolves are the best defensive team in the league
As a Luka fan it is indeed bananas that his poor defense is often overlooked. It’s like he can’t be bothered to improve defensively, leave that less rewarding work to the rest of the squad 😂
Too much of the national media just looks at which team has the best player, and assume that team has the advantage. Luka, Luka, Luka, blah, blah... He's great, I get it, but not every best player is Jordan and can win single-handedly. You still need more than one guy. It seems as if too many people slept through the regular season, where the Celtics were the best team in the League wire-to-wire, and they are now 14-2 in the postseason. They are stronger than Dallas 3 through 8.
Do you really think Irving is better than every Celtic player? Please.
Irving is like 4 on that list
Jordan didn’t win single handedly either. Hate when people say that nonsense
Whatever. Rank Irving wherever you want. Don't care. Point is the Celtics are balanced and deeper.
And Jordan was much more capable of being the number one difference between a title and not winning it. He won three, then the two years he played baseball they didn't win, then they won three more when he got back. Doncic isn't that kind of player.
@@peteg475 duh. Everyone with eyes can see the Celtics are deeper. Obvious point.
Jordan was the tipping point from a team being good and being champions. That team didn’t win a title but still won 55 games and made it to the East semis without him. I’m just saying he had help that’s all
The MAVs have a micro chance of winning this series #Celtics18 en route 🙌🏽🔥🙌🏽🔥🙌🏽!!!
Legler with his nose deep up Luka's @ss and overlooking Boston being one of the top defensive teams with 5 elite two-way starters.
Is Legs a Mavs fan or what??? Sheeesh
Celtics ability to have all 5 guys switch on defense is giving guys like Kyrie, Gafford, Lively, Washington a ton of problems. Luka needed 20+ shots for a inffeciet game 1. Game 2 he started great in the first half. Gassed out which is a conditional issue in the second half. Worst, part also Luka getting problems with the trap and help defense. Turn the ball over 8 times in game 2 which the most of any player in the game. Eventhough Mavs climb back to a short distance, Celts have their numbers and Mavs hasn't adjusted to Celtics switch defense. The offense that runs through Luka all the time is taking a toll. Would not mind switching the offense to a more pass and move to get different switches and mismatches because the whole heavy pick n roll isn't working and making Luka work 2x more to get a good bucket. It's unsustainable for this series. Celts in 5 or sweep. Kidd hasn't adjusted anything. Lively and Gafford might not play no more and they need more shooting like Kleiber or Hardway Jr.
It’s conditioning thing not conditional! Look it up. I swear half you guys can’t spell!
@@markbantz9699He had very valid points and thats what you got out of it? English might not be his first language. Relax.
Bingo. This is the key difference between the “best defense in the NBA (Minnesota)” and the Celtics.
This ties into why Kyrie has struggled relative to the Wolves series (aside from him having a mental block about playing against Boston) - he can’t hunt matchups.
Being able to hunt matchups against guys like Gobert, KAT etc. provided a pressure release valve for Kyrie.
@@markbantz9699 I think that's bad grammar. I looked it up, conditional is spelled correctly. It's just the wrong word. However, scale!z is not a spelling of any word. I guess you're one of the half that can't spell or even know the difference between spelling and grammar. 😂😂
Legs. You were flat out wrong. 💚☘️
Luka has zero help on offense. Is Kyrie showing up for game 3 and are the Mavs going to make their free throws and a few 3s?
For the Celtics is enough being consistent, while the Mavs have to be brilliant to have a chance.
WHERE MY ROAD DAWGS AT????!!!!! 🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️!!!!!!😂😂😂 Bostons better on the road!!!
Across the board the ESPN analysts overlook the fact that Kyrie Irving spent that short ill-fated time in Boston and they figured out a lot of his moves... And although they won't say it and they take the high road, they're pissed that he set them back a couple of years and deprived them of possible titles
Mavs look bad because of their defence. Also, it's 7 on 2. Celtics had a typical crap shooting game and STILL won.
It is just sick to me that Las Vegas betting poll is used as a reference for analysing basketball.
Luka is the one being held together with duck tape and his teammates are playing like they’re the ones banged up.
It’s duct
@@JasonMcNamara-y6y I’m loyal to the duck brand of tape
Regarding Kyrie second guessing himself, I think Legler is neglecting the fact that Kyrie had his shot blocked on multiple occasions in this series (in the mid range as well) , especially when switched. This wasn't the case vs slow footed bigs in Minnesota. So of course Irving is second guessing himself
A lot of people talking shit about the Mavs but I believe this team can still turn it around. Hard to imagine Kyrie and the role players don't improve at home. Plus Luka has another level he can get to. The Mavs were up 2-0 on the Heat in 06 and lost in 6 games. It can be done
It will be so funny if Kyrie figures it out at home but the Celtics actually have a good shooting night. This one was only in reach because Boston missed 75% of their threes, mostly open or wide open threes. They’ve generated like 36 wide open threes over the last two games, not to mention open ones.
Boston’s offense sucked all night missing easy shots. They haven’t put it together yet. Just imagine if they do, that’s a demoralizing thought .
Jamal Murray should learn from Tatum a thing or two.
Legs bad mouthing the maids 😂 you can see the anger
The Celtics are making them work on defense and making them gassed
I'm telling you right now this series is going to be exactly like the Mavs vs Suns series 2 years ago. Dallas will fashionably turn it up at home and completely defend home court. It will go to a crazy game 7 and will depend on who plays better out of JB/JT and Luka/Kai.
16:35 Luka has done enough offensively but his defense is atrocious. Guys are driving right passed him and it’s leading to open shots. The Mavs are lucky the Celtics shot 25% from 3 last night. It could’ve been a 15-20 point blowout.
His defense is no worse than the last 3 rounds, Boston just has better offensive players than LA, OKC and definitely Minnesota
@@michaelahurt that should tell you something 😂
Those teams failed to put Luka in pick and roll situations so their best offensive players could attack him and drive right past him to create open looks for their teammates 🤷🏼♂️ his defense is really bad.
@@iampadrino They actually didn't. They did the exact same thing.
But Boston has 5 shooters. Those teams had 3-4 so Dallas, specifically Lively and Gafford, could just ignore someone and they could all loaf up against the star
But you can't do that against Boston. Especially against KP because he destroys smaller players on switches
They are still bringing help against Tatum but when they do he finds a wide open 38%+ shooter instead of Josh Giddey or Jaden McDaniels
They could’ve won if Luka shot more then two shots in the 2nd half to. Credit to Boston, but Dallas looks like they don’t even give a shit. That first quarter run in the first game spooked them man
Let’s be real here. If PJJ was a Celtic, would he be the seventh best Celtic?? If Lively or Gafford played in Boston would they even crack the rotation?? Dallas looked bad because they’re not very good.
Boston's roster is the best in the league from top to bottom but that is such a casual take lol.
PJJ certainly wouldn’t start on the Celtics. He’d take the Sam Hauser minutes which isn’t saying much.
Sam can give you 20 and he has ,he is a elite defender by the stats ,I've watch this team all year
None of what you said is on Dallas. It’s all on the Celtics elite defense and the lack of Lukas. Let’s be real here gentleman.
Doncic had been playing outstanding defense, best in his career, he was #1 in opponents fg% against, steals and deflections among all players in the playoffs coming into this series. But Kyrie was backing him up with some great defense of his own and putting up some good to great offensive numbers. This series hes been a no show and because Lukas focus has to be as the primary scorer he is looking to score every play and he's weary of getting into foul trouble as their only reliable and viable scoring option. Kyrie is KEY, period end of discussion, to turning this series around. His involvement and success will open up the floor for the supporting cast. That's this teams design and it's path to success otherwise they're done.
7:45 the Celtics are allowed to shove lively
Did anyone else think this would be a bad series for dallas bc once ik they were going to play right away i knew gafford and lively were basically going to be a none factor bc boston requires you to gurd away from the basket and then I thought about PH and DJJ and I was like okay boston can close you out better than minnesota can and from there I was like what challenges does dallas offer boston and I couldn’t think of any.
Funny how that easy path through the east gave the Celtics tougher games even loses at home, now they go on the road where they've been undefeated but no one seems to mention that. They seem to find talking points that favor the Mavs not the best team all year the Boston Celtics.
You guys understand basketball way better than any other so called "analysts". Meanwhile Russilo thinks Tatum played an awful game. Doesn't even understand the difference between a bad scoring game and a bad game.
NBA Analysts: Kyrie is due for a big game. No NBA Analysts: Tatum is due for a big game.
Tatum can be about 20% of his starting 5 for Celts to win, but Kyrie has to be 30% and hes NOT
“Cross matching doesn’t matter” that is the whole reason Dallas hasn’t been able to get easy looks like lobs. If you call up Lively/Gafford it’s Tatum just switching onto you
Where's the cat?
lol it’s funny fans don’t mention how Luka plays no defense and holds the ball to long on offense
It’s too long! Tells you what I think of your comment!
Dallas been gettin cooked on both ends of the court. Kyrie has been trash, role players disappeared. The mavs have no offensive flow...Its luka doing too much and thats about it.
They gotta figure something out otherwise its a sweep. Give Boston credit, all their guys are making plays.
Kyrie is 0-12 against this team for a reason
Also legs I don’t think the Celtics change their defense if kyrie gets going. I think they are going to play kyrie and Luka straight up and live with it, and then limit the others, because there isn’t a single other really good creator in that lineup. The one they do have they will not play (Tim hardaway) because he is such a defensive liability. Joe mazulla I think realizes that kyrie and Luka could combine for 80, but he could hold the rest of team under 30. Dallas supporting cast is not as good as you think, they play well within the system, but that system has been foiled by this Celtics team. There are no lobs and corner 3s that was their formula for winning, for getting points for their role players; not just easy baskets, but the easiest of baskets.
No one talks about pace.
Boston learned from the pacers series. Celtics push the ball and do not relent. Luka and kyrie can't keep up for 48 min. Watch them with their hand on their knees in the 4th.
This is Eastern basketball, defense, against West basketball, offense. Defense wins championship. The Lakers did not beat the Celtics for years until in the 80's the finally had a defensive presence. All these announcers have been beguiled by great offensive players and not seen a great defensive team who can also score when necessary. Wednesday night: Time to show Greatness!
Boston is battle-tested. They’ve been through just about every scenario in the playoffs. This year’s version just has too many weapons.
"the games have been close". What?
Heard that and knew immediately what quality of analysis we were gonna get with these two. Embarrassing stuff.
Celtics best road record regular season and playoffs. Look out Dallas!
I'm just tired of the childish tyranny of individualism. After all and despite all being said, basketball is a team sport. We should be thankfull the Celtics are bringing back the essence of hooping: relations matter clearly more than indivual performances.
Legs the math doesn’t work. This is mostly Boston limiting Dallas as opposed to them just sucking. If Luka and kyrie combine for 60 every night it’s most likely not enough, because you’ll need 50 other points and I don’t think you get pj Washington and Derrick jones jr to combine for 30 consistently or Dereck lively and Daniel gafford to combine for 20 consistenly. That’s just to reach 110, the Celtics have played a B and C+ in their two games offensively and they scored 107 (took the starters out with 3 minutes left), and 105. If we get a B+/A- offensive game from the Celtics they get to 115-120, and mavs can’t match that output against this Celtics defense. We are going to get a game where the celts go nuclear on offense.
Kyrie is in shambles because of the love he’s getting in Boston
Kyrie not showing up vs Boston is nothing new a few years ago Boston swept kyrie vs the nets he also wasn’t that good in that series also I think he had a great game 1 and than he no showed 3 straight games
Boston has great defenders
the crowd has to do something
Just need to win the next two games at home.
No big deal.
Also jayson kidd for some reason won’t play hardy or hardaway which are two good shooters that dallas has bc exum and green are not helping ypu
It's basically 1 against 12🚩 Kyrie is a No Show 😠
Boston has certainly looked like the better team. Lots of ridiculous commentary on here. Legler’s analysis is great.
Keep in mind, during the regular season…
Celtics versus Denver 0-2,
Celtics versus Thunder 1 - 1, but the second game was end of season didn’t matter.
Celtics versus Timberwolves 1-1
Celtics versus Clippers 1-1
Also keep in mind that Phoenix was 64-18 in 2022, Mavs in seven
Luka played well last game, and decent the first game. He gotta step up his effort on defence tho, he only really gave it all in the fourth I feel like, and then neither brown or tatum was really scoring on him. Stop the doubles, fix the rotation issues, and kyrie gotta do SOMETHING man.
The hatred for the Celtcis is painfully obvious ,this will only make them more determined to throw egg in their faces.
Kyrie had a good first quarter in game 2. It didn’t lead him to him going off
If anyone could outplay kyrie and luka and play lockdown defense. It was the jays
8 out of 10 sports commentators picked Dallas to win,because they swept through the West.
Luka actually made 4 3s in game one too. not that it matters
Gafford was okay. Kleber took minutes from him and did pure garbage with it. This guy should not step in for the rest of the finals. BIG MISTAKE from Kidd to bring him back. Replace Kleber's minutes with Gafford's, have Luka cut a couple of turnovers, make a couple of these missed free throws and one of these bum-looking Mavs to at least hit 1 or 2 open 3s, and the series would be 1-1, because the Celtics did not play their best neither. Huge missed opportunity.
Both Kyrie and Luka a liability in defense. But Kyrie is a bit better than Luka on defense coz at least he can chase down.
Hahahaha not a single comment lol where is everyone 😂😂😂😂
They all mavs fans
😂😂😂😂😂 crickets 🦗
Men i tell you leg y angry oh boy @tigerhoods7927
@tigerhoods7927 i want to know what are they thinking right now lol about have a esay pass through them 😅😅😅😅😅
Legler never giving boston any credit because he picked the mavs to win lol kyrie is struggling because celtics have a way better perimeter d than minny. No way around it
Mavs are not making the 3 almost only luka hits 3's .Even tho mavs create better shot and contest better shots than boston on defense .If they keept this up but hit 3's they win games
So people still dont understand it is coach vs coach in the finals... Kidd was humiliated and will be for the rest of the finals... Wtf kidd
Lost a lot of respect for Leggert for his disasterous analysis of the series going into this. It took two wins from them for him to even acknowledge Boston. I thought he was better than the rest of the national media talking heads who went with the stupid-ass narrative that the Celtics hadn't been tested (they were, by Indiana) and forgot about a couple of guys named Porzingis and Jaylen Brown. What a fucking disaster.
🎯👍
Luka doncic is 6 ft 8 235 lbs, gafford is 6 ft 11 265 lbs, pj Washington is 6 ft 8 240 lbs, lively is 7 ft 1 255 lbs, guys that size don't end up on the floor unless they got fouled, the refs refuse to call a foul on Boston... game 1 dallas had 8 minutes of no calls go their way, game 2 they had 6 minutes of no calls go their way... I guess Boston fans and the refs expect us to all believe that jeryatrch Al horford and toothpick tingus pingus are better rim protectors than Shaq and Hakeem... gtfo.
Celtics in 5
Boston know how to shut Kyrie down,ever since he left the Celtics,they have done it, that's why he can't be who he wants to be,they know how he plays.
Kyrie lets the crowd get in his head thats why
Tim is twisting himself into a pretzel and trying really hard to say it is not Celtics defense that is turning the Mavericks players into turnips. By the way Celtics are undefeated on the road (just saying)
Even Luka who started both games great was gassed by the fourth quarter. The fact is Celtics defense is causing the Mavericks players except for Luka to have a crisis of confidence.
Celts have beaten Mavericks 3 times since their season changing trade, and in all of them Luka has had 30+ points including 2 triple doubles (he also had a triple double when Celtics beat them 119-110 in Dallas on 1/22/2024).
This is a BAD matchup for Dallas.
2 more to Banner #18.
☘️☘️☘️☘️💚💚💚💚🍀🍀🍀🍀 #18
Legler is so lost. Simple Kyrie can’t get past Jrue one on one!