Jayson Tatum Leads Celtics to 18th NBA Championship with Win Over Mavericks

The Boston Celtics clinched their 18th NBA title with a 4-1 victory over the Dallas Mavericks in the Finals, marking their first championship since 2008.

Jayson Tatum scored 31 points and dished out 11 assists as the Boston Celtics secured their record-breaking 18th championship with a decisive 106-88 win over the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

Tatum also grabbed eight rebounds, while Jaylen Brown contributed 21 points, eight rebounds, and six assists for Boston, which celebrated this victory 16 years after their last title, finishing the playoffs with a 16-3 record.

The Celtics previously defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2008 Finals, and both teams held 17 championships each before Boston’s win on Monday.

Jrue Holiday scored 15 points and pulled down 11 rebounds, while Derrick White added 14 points as the Celtics clinched the best-of-seven series in their second attempt.

Brown was named the Finals MVP, averaging 20.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, and five assists throughout the series.

Basketball player dunks ball.

Luka Doncic led the Mavericks with 28 points and 12 rebounds but committed seven turnovers. Kyrie Irving finished with 15 points and nine assists, while Josh Green scored 14 points for Dallas.

After Dallas called a timeout trailing by 11 points with 3:11 left in the second quarter, Boston took complete control of the game.

The Celtics went on a 17-7 run, including six points from Brown. Payton Pritchard added the final punctuation with a 49-foot buzzer-beater from half-court, sending Boston into the halftime break with a 67-46 lead.

Holiday’s layup extended Boston’s lead to 78-52 with 9:10 left in the third quarter. Green responded by converting a putback and hitting a three-pointer, sparking a 10-2 Dallas run that brought the score to 80-62.

The Mavericks narrowed the gap to 17 points, but Boston held an 86-67 lead entering the fourth quarter.

The Celtics maintained at least an 18-point lead for the rest of the game.

A three-point play by Tatum gave the Celtics a 46-31 advantage with 7:08 left in the first half, which Dallas managed to trim with an 8-2 run, scoring all points inside the paint. Al Horford's layup halted the Mavericks' momentum before Boston’s dominant stretch.

In the final 1:39 of the first quarter, Boston scored nine consecutive points to take a 28-18 lead into the second quarter.

Boston shot 42.7% from the field, while Dallas shot 44.9% but was outscored by 10 points at the free-throw line and turned the ball over 13 times compared to Boston’s nine.

This was Boston’s first NBA championship victory in 16 years.