Oregon Basketball's Payton Pritchard, Boston Celtics Handled by Dallas Mavericks in Game 4

No NBA Finals sweep in 2024.

Oregon basketball star Payton Pritchard will have to travel back to Boston to try to finish up the series against Dallas. This was an absolute beatdown by the Mavericks (122-84) and something you want to erase from your memory bank if you're the Celtics.

"We understand what it's like from their point of view, and you know, they came out super aggressive," Celtic forward Jayson Tatum said. "They played harder tonight. Obviously, we
didn't shoot the ball well at all. It's something that we can learn from."

Boston only scored 35 points in the first half, which was the fewest points in any half under head coach Joe Mazzulla (regular season or playoffs).

Dallas Mavericks forward Derrick Jones Jr. blocks a shot by Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard. — Jun 14, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Derrick Jones Jr. (55) blocks a shot by Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard (11) during the first half of game four of the 2024 NBA Finals at American Airlines Center. | Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

This is where Pritchard got a larger opportunity to show more of what he can do in front of a national audience. It may have been garbage time after both Dallas and Boston's starters got pulled late in the third quarter but a couple of coast-to-coast layups may do well for his confidence going into Game 5.

Pritchard finished with 11 points on 5-for-14 shooting to go along with three assists and three rebounds in 22 minutes.

The 38 point win by Dallas ended up being the third largest margin of victory in NBA Finals history.

Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard dribbles the ball against Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic. — Jun 12, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard (11) dribbles the ball against Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) during the fourth quarter during game three of the 2024 NBA Finals at American Airlines Center. | Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Luka Doncic set the tone all night, as he finished with 29 points on 12-for-26 shooting, adding five rebounds, five assists, and three steals. He did struggle shooting from deep, missing all eight of his attempts.

"We were locked in, especially on the defense end," Doncic said. "We played with pace. It
helped them. I'm here to help them in every way I can. We just got to play like that."

Doncic was noticeably playing faster and controlling a higher tempo on offense than he had implemented in this entire series.

When the NBA sends in referee Scott Foster, you know the league wants to extend the series for TV money purposes, viewership, ratings, etc.. Just something to keep in mind as we look forward to Game 5 on Monday at 5:30 p.m. PDT on ABC at the TD Garden.

Payton Pritchard and the rest of the Celtics want to finish this series up in front of their home crowd of Boston very badly.

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