<p>Welcome to the 2024 NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and the Dallas Mavericks.</p> <p>The all-conquering regular season champs who have been there before – only to exit as bridesmaids – against the squad that restocked and rebuilt itself at the trade deadline and have been on a monster run since.</p> <p>It’s Boston vs Dallas. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown vs Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. It’s not the match-up many of us expected but this shapes up as a Finals for the ages.</p> <p>Who is set to star in this series and most importantly, who will be crowned NBA Champions for season 2023-24?</p> <p>For the latest analysis, odds, predictions and betting tips for this mouthwatering matchup, check out my NBA Finals betting tips and predictions below.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>NBA Finals Series Preview</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Boston should be here. They won 64 regular season games and creamed all-comers throughout the playoffs.</p> <p>They rolled Miami 4-1 who were without Jimmy Buckets. Then took care of Cleveland in five, who lost Donovan Mitchell along the way and swept the Eastern Conference Finals, with Tyrese Haliburton going down with a hammy issue during the sweep.</p> <p>The knockers will say they’ve had the charmed run to this point – and I’m a knocker!</p> <p>Meanwhile Dallas made the playoffs as the No. 5 seed.</p> <p>Some LA Clipper-lovers suggested they could win a chip, but Dallas handled them in six. Then, Luka, Kyrie and co ousted the No. 1 seeds, Oklahoma City, in six and we all took note of these Mavs.</p> <p>Then, in the Western Conference Finals, against an upstart Timberwolves team, King Kyrie and Luka Legend took complete control and needed only five games to make their way through to The Finals.</p> <p>So, what happens from here? Time to dive in on some X’s and O’s.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Luka vs Holiday</h3> <p>Boston brought in Jrue Holiday with a view to this very day. He has championship experience with Milwaukee and makes all the right plays at all the right times.</p> <p>He is perfectly built to defend Doncic and make his life hard – something no one could do for the Wolves in the West Finals. Holiday is long and strong and regularly defends the best guards in the NBA – and in the Olympics, which he will do in Paris after these Finals.</p> <p>But Luka is different. He is simply different gravy. He feeds off defenders trying to bump and grind against him. He has every shot fake and step-back in the game. He plays the game at his tempo, no one else’s.</p> <p>During the West Finals, the Slovenian superstar averaged 32.4 points, almost 10 boards and 8.2 dimes. He also led the series for steals and shot the triple @ 42%.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Can Tatum and Brown Breakthrough?</h3> <p>In 2022, Golden State took the title from Boston’s hands in six games.</p> <p>Whilst Steph Curry cemented his place among the greats of all-time, a young Jayson Tatum struggled in his maiden Finals. His scoring dipped to 21.5 points per game on the back of some horrid 36.7% shooting.</p> <p>Jaylen Brown was better – but far from outstanding, dropping 23.5 per game but also in an efficient manner (43.1% from two and 34% from three).</p> <p>However, the East Finals showed us both Boston playmakers have grown and matured.</p> <p>Jayson dropped 30, 10 and 6 per game and East Finals MVP Jaylen chimed in with close enough to 30 and five boards.</p> <p>Sidenote, how Brown won Eastern Conference MVP above Tatum is something I’ll never get my head around.</p> <p>So, both boys have had the Finals experience and tasted defeat but should be better for the run.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Closing Time</h3> <p>In the NBA, I often side with whichever team has the best player – and whichever team has more stars at the top of its tree.</p> <p>The NBA is so often decided by the superstars. Good or bad, superstars can have a ridiculous impact in a game of basketball.</p> <p>No one has as much impact as a dominant quarterback in the NFL but guys like LeBron, Steph, KD (and others) can dominate a game on both ends.</p> <p>And closing time is when the stars really shine brightest.</p> <p>In the Wolves series (and I was with Minnesota), did you ever feel like Anthony Edwards would close the games better than Doncic or Kyrie?</p> <p>I love Ant Man – and he likely gets to their level – but Dallas always had the king and queen with Luka and Kyrie both able to go and get a bucket or create a bucket whenever the game needed one.</p> <p>Jaylen Brown begins games on fire but does have a tendency to slow down in the second half, whilst Tatum can occasionally start slow but end strong. Both will need to be at their best in the closing stanza to close the game.</p> <p>Boston’s advantage, though, may ironically lay with some role players who are experienced and capable of taking and making big shots late in a game.</p> <p>Holiday will, Derrick White definitely will, as will big Al Horford. They’ll need to as well, because we have more than enough evidence to prove Luka will take and make big hoops as will Kyrie.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>NBA Finals 2024 Prediction &amp; Betting Tips</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Head-to-Head (H2H)</h3> <p>My head is truly telling me Boston, but I have my doubts about them, so I’ve made the quick jump across to the Mavs. Kyrie and Luka are two guys you want in the clutch.</p> <p><strong>H2H prediction:</strong> Dallas 4-3.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Finals MVP</h3> <p>Kyrie was once a Celtic – remember that!? Also remember that relationship ended awfully.</p> <p>Both sides do not have a good word to say about the other and the ill-feeling will be obvious, especially during games at Boston’s TD Garden.</p> <p>I’m tipping that will fuel Irving – who I have come round to in a big way. Holiday can keep Doncic under some kind of control (maybe, perhaps) so Derrick White/Jayson Tatum will be needed to defend Irving, which is easier said than done.</p> <p><strong>Betting tip: </strong>Kyrie Irving.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>NBA Finals Best Bet</h3> <p>Kyrie Irving 20+ points in each game of the series (3.60 at the time of writing, odds are subject to change).</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>NBA 2024 Finals Schedule</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Game 1:</strong> Friday, June 7, 10:30am AEST, TD Garden (Boston)</p> <p><strong>Game 2: </strong>Monday, June 10, 10:00am AEST, TD Garden (Boston)</p> <p><strong>Game 3:</strong> Thursday, June 13, 10:30am AEST, American Airlines Center (Dallas)</p> <p><strong>Game 4:</strong> Saturday, June 15, 10:30am AEST, American Airlines Center (Dallas)</p> <p><strong>Game 5: </strong>Tuesday, June 18, 10:30am AEST, TD Garden (Boston)*</p> <p><strong>Game 6:</strong> Friday, June 21, 10:30am AEST, American Airlines Center (Dallas)*</p> <p>Game 7: Monday, June 24, 10:00am AEST, TD Garden (Boston)*</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><em>*if necessary</em></p>