Finals Game Four: Brooms Broken

A strange rarity hit the sports world entering Game Four of this year's NBA Finals: both the NBA and Stanley Cup Finals stood at 3-0. The last time we saw a sweep in the Stanley Cup Final was 1998. The last time we saw a sweep in the NBA Finals was 2018, much more recent than the NHL. The last time we saw sweeps in both in the same year, you have to go all the way back to 1995. That year, the Houston Rockets swept the Orlando Magic to repeat as NBA Champions, and the New Jersey Devils swept the Detroit Red Wings to win their very first Stanley Cup.

The reason why I bring that up is because the NBA and NHL basically run their seasons neck-and-neck with each other. Both leagues start in October, their All-Star Games are in February, their playoffs start in April, and they crown champions in June. So with that, would we see both Finals end in sweeps together for the first time in 29 years?

I'll just answer this right now: no.

The Dallas Mavericks started out very strong; putting up 34 points in the first quarter and ending that frame leading by 13 points. Now, we saw Dallas start well before, but it would be gone in an instant. Not this time. This time, in what could be their last home game of the season, the Mavericks decided to put on a hell of a show. They put their foot on the gas and never let up. Up by 26 at halftime. That's it. It was done. The Celtics couldn't get anything going. They were completely dominated by the Mavs in the whole game. Their lead actually reached 30 points during the third quarter, and they spent the fourth planning a return trip to Beantown.

The Mavericks won Game Four by a score of 122-84--a 38-point victory. They not only broke the brooms, they set the remnants on fire. Luka Doncic led the way with 29 points, while Kyrie Irving had 21 of his own. However, the main story was Tim Hardaway, Jr., who had 15 points off the bench. All 15 points came from behind the arc--five three-pointers made. See what happens when you actually make plays for Hardaway? I don't know why it took Jason Kidd this long for him to finally do this. Seriously, how is Kidd a coach inthe NBA?

So there will be no sweep in this year's NBA Finals. However, will there be a reverse sweep? There have only been five reverse sweeps in pro sports history. The NHL had four of them. MLB had the one, but it has never happened in the NBA. I honestly can't see Dallas winning four straight. They received their one win to break the brooms, but honestly, all that did was increase the Celtics' drive to lock this down at home.

This had the makings of a big night for Boston. Not only did they have the chance to capture their 18th NBA Championship, but in Boston, the 2024 Yankees/Red Sox series began. Not only were the Celtics' championship plans put on hold, the Red Sox were (again) dominated by the Yankees. Game Five of the NBA Finals will take place on Monday in Boston, and that will be quite a raucous crowd in Beantown, as the Celtics will look to capture that championship and take sole possession of the lead in that category.

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