The Boston Celtics got demolished in Game 4 of the NBA Finals. They also got chastised by Charles Barkley after the final buzzer sounded at TD Garden in Boston, Mass.
The Celtics were thoroughly outplayed in a 122-84 beatdown at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks.
Boston quickly fell behind by double figures in the first quarter. Dallas gradually pushed their lead to as high as 50 points in the second half. The Mavericks led 115-67 midway through the fourth.
“That was embarrassing by the Celtics. They actually thought the Mavs were going to quit. They came out nonchalant, lackadaisical. … that was so unprofessional, the way they played that game tonight,” said Barkley.
Chuck: "That was embarrassing by the Celtics. They actually thought the Mavs were gonna quit." pic.twitter.com/PqIoC6d4Fk
— NBA TV (@NBATV) June 15, 2024
Barkley added the caveat that he still believes that the Celtics are likely to win the series. No NBA team has ever come back from down 3-0 in a best-of-seven series. But the Celtics very nearly came back from down 3-0 during last year’s Eastern Conference Finals against the Miami Heat. Boston forced a Game 7 but choked away a chance at completing the historic comeback.
During Friday’s loss, the Celtics shot a brutal 36.3% from the field. No Boston player scored more than 15 points in the contest.
The silver lining for Celtics fans is that now Boston has a chance to clinch banner No. 18 at TD Garden. But the Mavericks aren’t going to just roll over and let the Celtics win without a fight.
