The Celtics now lead the Mavericks 2-0 in the 2024 NBA Finals, and the fans at the TD Garden Arena certainly let former player Kyrie Irving hear it after Sunday night's 105-98 victory.
Kyrie was walking off the court and repeatedly was signaling "5" with his hands. Evidently the star player was not asking for a 'high five' but was rather heard saying, 'See you Game 5' to the crowd, which means it's not over, as the teams will play Games 3+4 in Dallas.
Kyrie said see y’all in game 5 pic.twitter.com/brfTH68YLP
— MFFL (@Mavs_FFL) June 10, 2024
Now if the Mavs do in fact avoid a sweep and head back for the fifth game in the series, Dallas would prefer the series be 2-2 and not 3-1. Nevertheless, if anyone knows that it is possible to comeback from being down three games to one, it would be Kyrie, who was apart of the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers team, the first in NBA history to overcome a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals (1-35).
Kyrie came into the series eighth all-time on the Finals scoring list (27.7 ppg), however, the veteran guard has struggled to find his shot in Games 1+2, as he is averaging just 14 points on 35.1% FG, while also being 0-for-8 from deep.
"A lot of shots were hitting the back rim," Kyrie said after the Game 2 loss. "That can piss you off as a competitor, but it's all part of the game of basketball, and you gotta accept the ups and downs of this. I would say that's the toughest challenge when you're in a series. You want to play extremely well, especially when you're playing in the Finals. A little disappointed in myself. Not being able to convert a lot of more of my opportunities that I have in the lane."
Kyrie added, "They won both games at home, now it's our job to go home and win both games at home."
To note, only five teams have ever come back from down 2-0 in the NBA Finals (31-5), but Kyrie has been in this spot before, and knows what it takes in order to will his team to victory. On that same note, he has been on both sides of a 2-0 series comeback, even though he was injured and didn't play, Kyrie was on the Celtics team that blew a 2-0 lead in the 2018 Eastern Conference Finals vs. his former Cavs team. That was the only time in franchise history that the Celtics lost a playoff series after being up 2-0 (43-1).
The Mavs are hoping that history will repeats itself, as they will look to bounce back, when they host the Celtics for Game 3 in Dallas on Wednesday, June 12 at 8:30 pm ET, while Game 4 will played on Friday, June 14 at 8:30 pm ET. And if there is indeed Game 5, like Kyrie guaranteed, it will be held back in Boston on Monday, June 17.
Related: Celtics Advance To NBA Finals, As Fans Await Their Anticipated Opponent: 'F*** Kyrie'
