The seven-game NBA Finals series begins on Friday evening as one of the most storied franchises in the league, the Boston Celtics, go in search of a record-breaking 16th crown against the Dallas Mavericks.
The Celtics, who last won the title back in the 2008 season, are perennial contenders, but have gone through a barren spell over the past decade.
The Eastern Conference side topped the standings with a 64-18 record before handling the Miami Heat (4-1), the Clevland Cavaliers (4-1) and the Indiana Pacers (4-0) in play-off action, boasting a sensational 12-2 record.
They duel against the #5 seed from the Western Conference, the Mavericks. Dallas recorded a modest 50-32 record in the regular season before defeating the LA Clippers (4-2), the #1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder (4-2) and the Minnesota Timberwolves (4-1).
The teams met twice during the regular season - Boston took the series 2-0 with wins of 119-110 and 138-110. All-time Boston boasts a 46-40 record against Dallas and the Eastern Conference side has won its last four meetings with the Mavericks.
The star man for the underdog Mavericks is the multi-faceted Luka Doncic. The 6'7" Guard almost averaged a triple-double during his 70-game regular season 33.9-9.2-9.8 (33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds and 9.8 assists per game).
The Celtics were unable to shut him down during their two meetings – he averaged 35-15-12 across the two games. Other stats to note that could be useful in the props market – he hits 4.1 threes per game, attempts 10.6 three per game and has a turnover rate of 4.0 per game.
Boston relies on a pair of star names, Jaylen Brown and Jason Tatum. Brown is averaging 25-6.1-2.6 while Tatum weighs in with 26-10.4-5.9.
Tatum particularly enjoyed the matchups against Dallas earlier in the year averaging 35.5-9.5-4.0 and will likely be a contender for the MVP award.
Boston head into the series as 10/23 favourites, with Dallas a 19/10 outsider. The most likely series score according to the bookies is a 4-3 victory for the Eastern Conference side (13/4), with a cover bet on 4-2 (5/1) and 4-1 (16/5) likely to ensure profit for those confident in the Celtics.
It is six years since there has been a whitewash in the finals, with the last 4-3 scoreline either way coming eight years ago.
In terms of MVP, Tatum is priced at 4/5 with Doncic 2/1 - they are the most likely candidates for the Celtics and Mavericks respectively. Brown (6/1) should not be written off either, with 32-year-old Kyrie Irving also capable of heavy points scoring – an outside punt at 16/1.
