Mavs-Celtics preview: AD questionable, so union with Kyrie might begin

BOSTON – Since there’s not a lot of nostalgia, or venom for that matter, that can be pumped into the Mavericks’ return to TD Garden for an NBA Finals rematch against the Boston Celtics, it was up to Kyrie Irving to provide a storyline.

He delivered.

Irving was talking after the Mavericks’ loss in Philadelphia about his excitement of getting to play with Anthony Davis and related a story that is ages old but had never really been detailed before cropped up.

The year was 2018 and Irving was with the Celtics, who had an interesting roster at the time with youngsters Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who were just beginning their NBA careers.

Irving was interested in creating a super team with Kevin Durant and, perhaps, Davis. He picks up the story.

“I was caught in a hallway talking to KD and everybody was like: hey, these two are working together and the rumors started with AD about the same time,” Irving said. “We all had a vision to play together in Boston.”

Irving said that then-Boston general manager Danny Ainge was at least somewhat on board with the idea. But with two young stars in waiting in Tatum and Brown, the prospect of sacrificing one or both of them was daunting.

“We had some young pieces in JT and JB,” Irving said. “If we traded either one of them, who knows if they win a championship. The franchise had to do what was best for them and I had to do what was best for me. Now in our older age, we get the chance we envisioned when we were young kids.”

He prefaced it all by saying: “What a year, huh? 2018 for me.”

Irving ended up getting out of Boston by his own choice, went to Brooklyn for three, shall we say, unusual seasons and then was traded to the Mavericks to be Luka Dončić’s sidekick.

And he was darn good at it last season.

But, my, how things have changed.

Doesn’t seem like nine months ago that the Mavericks dejectedly left the court in Game 5 against the Celtics amid confetti and celebration knowing that they had gotten so close to the franchise’s second NBA championship.

Instead, it was Boston’s 18^th.

This rematch on Thursday of the Finals won’t have quite the kick that it might have if things had stayed even remotely as they were.

Now, there’s very little similar about this Mavericks’ team and the one that lost in five games in the Finals. Dončić is on the other side of America preparing to make his Los Angeles Lakers debut. Davis might be ready to suit up against the Celtics. And Klay Thompson, Spencer Dinwiddie, Caleb Martin, Max Christie and Naji Marshall all are new to the Mavericks and have no connection to the Finals.

What the Mavericks do have is the opportunity to put their next foot in front of the other. They have made the strategic decision to try to win big – literally. They plan to pair Davis with Daniel Gafford (or Dereck Lively II, when he returns to health) to form a bigger front line alongside P.J. Washington.

Coach Jason Kidd has seen this sort of lineup work before. In 2020, Davis played alongside Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee to form an oversized front court that was difficult to handle in terms of rebounding and was a beast defensively.

“Having someone like AD, his versatility to guard everyone,” Kidd said. “The mindset. We were a big team, being able to play with two bigs on the floor. And if you (include) LeBron (James), he can be a big, too. And the mindset of having the best defense in the league and that’s what we did those two years.”

That’s the blueprint for Dallas now. And the sooner they can start putting it into action, the better.

Here’s what else to watch for as the Mavericks visit the Celtics:

• The Mavericks’ injury report has Dereck Lively II (right ankle), Dwight Powell (right hip), P.J. Washington (personal) and Caleb Martin (trade pending) as out.
• Will he or won’t he? The biggest development of the Mavericks’ injury update is that Davis has been upgraded to questionable. The nationally televised game would be a grand time to unveil the Mavericks’ new star.
• The Mavericks’ longest trip of the season has been a washout so far. They eked out a 137-136 win in New Orleans to start it, but that seems like a month ago. They suffered blowout losses in Detroit and Cleveland before just missing against Philadelphia on Tuesday, 118-116.
• The Celtics, meanwhile, have found a groove of sorts. They have won their last four, including the last three on the road. On Tuesday, they scored an impressive 112-105 victory at Cleveland, which had beaten the Mavericks by 43 points on Sunday in Cleveland.
• If anybody thinks the Celtics are going to be one-hit wonders, think again. They are third in the NBA in overall offensive rating and fifth overall defensively. They shoot and make more three-pointers than anybody else and they are No. 1 in the league in fewest turnovers per game at 11.7.
• Jayson Tatum remains their leader at 26.8 points per game, but he’s got loads of help. Former Maverick Kristaps Porzingis is healthy and contributing 19.2 points and 7.1 rebounds. Jaylen Brown averages 23.1 points and Derrick White 16.2.
• After this, the Mavericks have four home games before the All-Star break, starting with Houston Saturday afternoon.

DALLAS MAVERICKS (26-25) at BOSTON CELTICS (36-15)

WHEN: 6:30 p.m. Thursday.

WHERE: TD Garden, Boston.

TV: TNT.

RADIO: KEGL 97.1 FM, 99.1 FM Zona MX (Spanish)

X: @ESefko