The prediction market is hot for the upcoming NBA Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and the Boston Celtics. It was quite obvious that Paul Pierce would choose the Celtics as a bona fide Celtics legend. But surprisingly, Pierce put in a lot of thought before determining the winner of the NBA Finals this season. On the recent episode of UNDISPUTED, he went into deep analysis of the two teams before declaring which team would take the crown.
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The Celtics legend followed Magic Johnson’s footsteps to put all his chips on the Boston franchise. He said, “I got the Celtics in six, Skip.” Skip Bayless quickly followed it up with a jab at him by saying, “I thought maybe you’d go four.” Despite that, The Truth remained unfazed and went on to detail why he thinks the Celtics will prove to be the superior team in the Finals.
Pierce believes that the Celtics have a deeper roster than the Mavericks. He said that for the Mavs to win, they would need their two superstars, Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic to perform at their best.
Whereas for the Celtics, they have Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, and Jrue Holiday, who are all capable of turning the tide around on their own. Pierce said, “There’s times when Jayson Tatum hasn’t played well, there’s time Brown hasn’t played well, they still know how to win.”
.@PaulPierce34 is taking his Celtics to win the NBA Finals👀 pic.twitter.com/91TNjK9bOa
— The Facility (@TheFacilityFS1) June 3, 2024
Speaking of winning, Pierce added that the Celtics have more experience of playing in the Finals. Moreover, Holiday has been part of the Championship winning team in 2021, which gives more edge to the Boston side.
So, as tough a battle as it’ll be for the two teams, the Mavs are a comparatively weaker side, mostly because they primarily rely on Kyrie and Luka to perform their magic. Surprisingly, Magic Johnson also had a similar take for the Finals.
Magic Johnson backs the Boston Celtics to win the trophy
The Mavs have been the strongest team in the West by a distance in the postseason. On the other hand, the Celtics are the only team with a 60+ games winning record this season. So, by no stretch of imagination is this going to be an easy series.
However, the Celtics still seem to be the favorites to win it against the Mavericks. Magic also favors the Boston franchise to win the trophy this year based on the assessment he recently posted on X.
Both teams have two superstars – Luka and Kyrie for the Mavs and Jayson and Jaylen for the Celtics. But overall, when you think about the edge in talent, it goes to the Celtics. They have the two next best players in the series in Jrue Holiday and Derrick White – and if Kristaps…
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) June 3, 2024
The NBA veteran wrote, “Both teams have two superstars – Luka and Kyrie for the Mavs and Jayson and Jaylen for the Celtics. But overall, when you think about the edge in talent, it goes to the Celtics.”
Magic also thinks that the Celtics have a deeper roster that will be extremely useful under pressure. The Lakers legend was spot on with his prediction back in March about the Mavs being the best team in the West. Needless to say, Magic’s accuracy can’t be questioned.
