The NBA Finals is set.
The pregame narrative: The Boston Celtics rolled through an injury-riddled Eastern Conference and hold home-court over the Dallas Mavericks. Led by Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, Dallas should present Boston with its toughest task yet.
Check out our Mavericks vs. Celtics betting markets for the series beginning on June 6.
Mavericks vs. Celtics betting markets
Let's start with the basics.
Boston is favoured to win the Finals and Jayson Tatum holds the shortest odds to win MVP.
The Celtics were a league-best 64-18 during the regular season and didn't slow down in the playoffs. Boston carved its way through the East with a 12-2 record and enters the finals with a seven-game winning streak.
The team had some favourable injury luck with Jimmy Butler, Tyrese Haliburton and Donovan Mitchell all missing time in their series' (Butler didn't play at all).
Dallas had a much tougher road but turned the gas on to close out the No. 1-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder and No. 3-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Mavericks won six of their final seven games and are 7-2 on the road. Beating the Celtics at TD Garden is no easy task, though. Boston is 43-6 at home with a +14.4 margin of victory.
Mavericks vs. Celtics betting markets: Player props
Tatum is favoured to win Finals MVP but Doncic holds the shortest odds to lead the series in scoring, threes, and assists.
That makes sense, considering Doncic can still stuff the stat sheet win or lose.
He's leading all finals players in points (28.8) and assists (8.8) per game and is tied with Derrick White for 3-pointers made (3.4). Doncic is also second to Tatum in rebounds (10.4 to 9.6).
Click linked odds to add selection to your betslip. Note: Lines have changed/market no longer available if grey.
| Player | Most PTS | Most AST | Most REB | Most 3PM |
| Luka Doncic | -136 | -715 | +175 | +110 |
| Jayson Tatum | +180 | +1,000 | -122 | +650 |
| Jaylen Brown | +700 | +8,000 | +6,000 | +2,000 |
| Kyrie Irving | +1,000 | +1,400 | — | +600 |
| Kristaps Porzingis | +4,000 | — | +1,200 | +2,000 |
| Derrick White | +6,000 | +2,000 | — | +300 |
| Jrue Holiday | +10,000 | +2,200 | — | +3,000 |
| Al Horford | +15,000 | — | +4,000 | +5,000 |
| P.J. Washington | +15,000 | — | +10,000 | +2,200 |
| Daniel Gafford | +25,000 | — | +2,000 | — |
| Dereck Lively | +25,000 | — | +1,200 | — |
Tatum had a tough start to the postseason but has elevated his play lately.
The three-time NBA First Team forward averaged 30.3 points in his last seven games on 46.6% shooting.
Jaylen Brown and Irving shouldn't be overlooked, though. Irving averaged 27.0 points in the conference finals while Brown had 29.8, winning ECF MVP.
On the injury front, Kristaps Porzingis is seemingly on track to play for Game 1 while Dereck Lively made his return to Dallas' lineup in Game 5 against Minnesota.
Lively has some intriguing value here. The rookie centre averaged 10.6 rebounds per game in his last five outings (excluding his early exit from Game 3 of the WCF).
Series specials
There are some additional ways to bet on the series, including exact score, series handicap and total games played.
Boston won the first and second round by scores of 4-1 before sweeping the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals.
Dallas took six games to beat both the Los Angeles Clippers and Thunder before dispatching the T-Wolves in five.
| Series betting markets | Odds |
| Celtics to win 4-0 | +650 |
| Celtics to win 4-1 | +325 |
| Celtics to win 4-2 | +450 |
| Celtics to win 4-3 | +400 |
| Mavericks to win 4-0 | +2,000 |
| Mavericks to win 4-1 | +1,100 |
| Mavericks to win 4-2 | +500 |
| Mavericks to win 4-3 | +750 |
| Celtics -1.5 games | -107 |
| Celtics -2.5 games | +190 |
| Celtics +1.5 games | -400 |
| Celtics +2.5 games | -1,430 |
| Mavericks +1.5 games | -125 |
| Mavericks +2.5 games | -265 |
| Mavericks -1.5 games | +270 |
| Mavericks -2.5 games | +650 |
Last year's NBA Finals between the Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat ended in five games, snapping a four-year streak of over 5.5 games cashing.
| Series betting markets | Odds |
| Over 5.5 games | -155 |
| Under 5.5 games | +116 |
| Over 6.5 games | +225 |
| Under 6.5 games | -335 |
The Celtics lost their last NBA Finals appearance, 4-2, to the Golden State Warriors in 2021-22.