NBA finals: Celtics rout Mavericks in Game 1 win as Porzingis returns in style

In the first match of the NBA finals on Thursday night, the Boston Celtics took the lead by defeating the Dallas Mavericks with a score of 107-89. Jaylen Brown did a great job scoring 22 points while Kristaps Porziņģis added 20 points in his comeback game after a month-long break.

Boston's Derrick White scored 15 points in the game. The team had a strong start, with a huge 29 point lead in the first half. They also hit 16 three-pointers. All of this was part of their journey to win their 18th NBA championship.

Porziņģis, who was out of action since the 29th of April due to a strained right calf, entered the game from the bench and had an instant impact. He contributed six rebounds and three blocks in just 21 minutes. Meanwhile, six Celtics players managed to score in double digits.

In the third quarter of the game, Dallas reduced the difference in points to just eight. However, Boston responded swiftly and extended their lead once more.

Dallas was carried by Luka Dončić's impressive 30-point performance. PJ Washington also contributed with 14 points and eight rebounds. However, the team struggled to maintain a steady offensive performance and only managed to rack up nine assists for their 35 field goals throughout the game.

Ex-Celtics player Kyrie Irving had a tough time on the court, only scoring 12 points. When he was introduced at the beginning of the game, he was met with a loud and long-lasting series of negative reactions from the audience. This continued anytime he had possession of the ball during the game.

The therapy followed after Irving battled with supporters from Boston and received a penalty for making an inappropriate movement during his visit to TD Garden in the playoffs of 2022.

The Celtics, who haven't won a championship since 2008, didn't appear to be affected by their 10-day break after sweeping the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals.

Throughout the game, the team displayed great energy as they passed the ball seamlessly in their opponent's half. Furthermore, they strategically passed the ball to the shooters, resulting in numerous successful 3-pointers. In addition, the team bravely took on the defense of Dallas by aggressively moving towards the inner court, resulting in several exciting dunks.

However, besides Dončić, who had 12 successful shots out of 26 attempts, Dallas had a difficult time at the beginning to adjust their positions and could not maintain a steady offensive rhythm.

The Mavericks were ahead by one in the middle of the first quarter. However, the Celtics fought back and scored more points than them- 44 to 16- which resulted in a score of 58-29 in the second quarter.

During the following 12 minutes of the game, the situation underwent a transformation as Dallas executed a 35-14 streak, with 15 points by Dončić, causing Boston's edge to dwindle to 72-64. Yet, Boston restored their lead at the conclusion of the third quarter, scoring 14 points while Dallas only managed 2, causing the score to increase to 86-66 going into the fourth quarter.

During the initial three quarters, Dallas only managed to make five assists. This is the lowest number of assists any NBA team has recorded within 36 minutes of a game over the past three seasons.

Porziņģis returned to the game after sitting out for 10 games. He replaced the starting player Al Horford after 7 minutes and 17 seconds of the first quarter. Apart from a white compression sleeve on his right leg, there were no visible signs of his injury.

He swiftly became involved in the game by making two free throws after being fouled by Dončić. On the next possession, he scored his first field goal by sinking a short jumper over Dončić.

After a short duration, he broke free in the frontcourt and made a slam dunk with both hands over Derrick Lively. When Dallas regained possession, Porziņģis was able to reject Jaden Hardy's layup. The Celtics advanced the ball and passed it to their tall player, who expertly sank a 16-foot shot.

Boston made a big push towards the end of the quarter, scoring 17 points to their opponent's 5 in just over five minutes. During that surge, Porziņģis was particularly impressive, making four out of five attempted shots, scoring 11 points, blocking two shots, and getting three rebounds. As a result, Boston headed into the second quarter with a comfortable 37-20 lead.

Porziņģis ended the first half of the game by scoring a total of 18 points while making seven out of nine shots.