DALLAS — Multiple moves will ultimately get the bigger headlines for Brad Stevens this season as the Celtics sit on the verge of an NBA title. Pouncing on Jrue Holiday once he became available after the Bucks traded for Damian Lillard is an obvious one. Finding a way to add Kristaps Porzingis and two first-round picks for Marcus Smart and spare parts may go down as one of the bigger trade steals in recent memory.
Yet, Porzingis was not available in Game 3, as has been the case for much of the postseason and Holiday was a supporting cast member in the 106-99 Game 3 win, albeit a very important one. Instead, there were less sexy moves that helped Boston pull off their 10th straight postseason win in Game 3 but vital ones in maximizing the team’s potential on a big stage.
Keeping faith in Jaylen Brown
The Celtics have had ample opportunity to move on from the All-Star in recent years. He was the subject of trade talks ever since his draft night back in 2016. Almost every big name on the trade market was floated as a possibility in a trade for Jaylen Brown early in his career but his development as a secondary star tested Stevens on this front in recent years.
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The chance was very much there for Boston to trade for an older more proven star in the past two years, whether it was with Kevin Durant two years ago or Damian Lillard this past offseason. An aggressive order involving Brown likely would have gotten either of those deals. However, Stevens stood firm with Brown, opting to lock him up to a supermax contract rather than cashing him in for a bigger name. The team had faith in Brown’s progression and that was on full display in Game 3.
Brown shot over 50 percent from the field for the 7th straight game this postseason while posting 30 points in the victory. His eight rebounds and eight assists per both team-highs. He’s the considerable favorite to win Finals MVP coming off the same honor in the East Finals, outplaying both the Mavericks stars and his own All-Star teammate in the process.
Brown’s improvement year over year has been constant and that has put the Celtics on the verge of a title, earning dramatic praise from his coach.
“I mean, how can I explain Jaylen? The guy just has a growth mindset,” Joe Mazzulla said. “He just wants to get better. He yearns to get better. He’s not afraid to face his weaknesses on the court.
“So when you have that type of mindset, you’re just going to be able to take on every situation that the game brings you. He puts himself in every single situation that he sees in a game. He uses six, seven, eight coaches a day, and every situation on both ends of the floor, he puts himself in that. And that’s how you have to grow, is to become vulnerable and on the things that make you uncomfortable, and he does that.”
Brown had a lot of glaring failures at the conclusion of the Celtics’ recent playoff runs (Game 7 vs. Miami in 2023 sticking out the most). Stevens ability to look past those to remain faithful to Brown was instrumental in creating this Celtics juggernaut.
Finding the right supplemental big
The Celtics needed to be ready for the reality that Porzingis would not be helpful in the playoffs at the trade deadline. Luke Kornet provided valuable reserve minutes at center but his defensive limitations would have been on display against speedy opponents in the postseason. Boston needed a versatile big in case of emergency and Stevens threaded the needle perfectly at the deadline by landing Xavier Tillman.
Four months later, Tillman gave the Celtics exactly what they needed in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, posting a plus-9 in 11 minutes with 3 points, 4 rebounds and a pair of blocks in Boston’s win.
“He played in the Western Conference for three or four years, and so he’s played against the Mavs,” Mazzulla said. “And so he’s had that experience. Memphis has used a similar game plan, so he was used to that. I thought with that comfort level of playing against those guys for so long, he was going to be able to execute the things that we needed to execute.
“And so I thought he did a great job in our switching and did a great job in our screening, getting into our spacing.”
The contributions took some pressure off Al Horford and allowed Boston to stay big for 48 minutes without Porzingis to better match the Mavericks interior size.
Every piece of the puzzle has battled for this Celtics group during this historic run, both big and small. Stevens nailing his smaller bets shined through in Game 3 and has put this team just one win away from a special place in Celtics history.
