What Joe Mazzulla Learned From Celtics’ Ugly Loss To Mavericks

The Celtics had an opportunity to claim the NBA’s ultimate prize Friday night, but they didn’t finish the job.

After three straight wins over Dallas, Boston was beaten down in Game 4 of the Finals at American Airlines Center. While the Celtics didn’t do themselves any favors by not bringing the appropriate energy and fight to the potential close-out game, the Mavericks deserve credit for throwing a haymaker after they looked down for the count.

Dallas’ tenacity left an impression on Boston head coach Joe Mazzulla, who knows his team will have to work hard for a clinching win.

“I learned that Dallas is a great team and you’re gonna have to earn it,” Mazzulla told reporters, per a video shared by CelticsBlog’s Noa Dalzell. “There’s a lot of stuff that we can control. We’ll go back to the film and watch that and we’ll try to be disciplined and controlled.”

The Celtics’ lopsided Game 4 loss shouldn’t prompt much concern among Green Teamers. Boston still is in a great spot heading into Monday night’s Game 5 at TD Garden, where Jayson Tatum and company surely will be extra motivated to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy in front of their diehard fans.

But as Mazzulla noted, the C’s will have to dig deep to put the final nail in the Mavs’ coffin.