Game ID: 22400635
Boston Celtics @ Dallas Mavericks
Saturday, January 25, 2025 at 5:30 PM ET
American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
DAL 29 20 27 31 107BOS 25 34 37 26 122
BOS @ DAL ScoutingBOS @ DAL Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
DAL availability going into 1/17 · 1 day's restOUT Edwards missed 8 since 1/01, out tonight
BACK Irving back 1/14 after 5, 30 min since (84% of 36)
BACK Williams back 1/14 after 2, 5 min since (32% of 15)
BACK Powell back 1/14 after 2, 9 min since (89% of 10)
NEW Dinwiddie 27 to 33 min over the last 5
NEW Hardy 16 to 23 min over the last 5
DAL availability going into 1/20 · 2 days' restOUT Lively II missed 2 since 1/15, out tonight
OUT Edwards missed 9 since 1/01, returns tonight: 9 min (62% of 15)
BACK Irving back 1/14 after 5, 35 min since (96% of 36)
BACK Williams back 1/14 after 2, 5 min since (32% of 15)
BACK Powell back 1/14 after 2, 8 min since (76% of 10)
NEW Dinwiddie 27 to 32 min over the last 5
DAL availability going into 1/22 · 1 day's restOUT Lively II missed 3 since 1/15, out tonight
OUT Williams missed 2 since 1/17, returns tonight: 9 min (63% of 15)
BACK Irving back 1/14 after 5, 37 min since (101% of 36)
BACK Edwards back 1/20 after 9, 9 min since (62% of 15)
BACK Powell back 1/14 after 2, 8 min since (76% of 10)
DAL availability going into 1/23 · back-to-backOUT Lively II missed 4 since 1/15, out tonight
OUT Hardy missed 2 since 1/20, out tonight
OUT Powell missed 2 since 1/20, out tonight
BACK Irving back 1/14 after 5, 37 min since (102% of 36)
BACK Edwards back 1/20 after 9, 12 min since (80% of 15)
BACK Williams back 1/14 after 2, 6 min since (42% of 15)
NEW Gafford 22 to 27 min over the last 5
DAL availability going into 1/25 · 1 day's restOUT Marshall missed 2 since 1/22, out tonight
OUT Thompson missed 2 since 1/22, returns tonight: 26 min (97% of 27)
OUT Lively II missed 5 since 1/15, out tonight
OUT Hardy missed 3 since 1/20, returns tonight: 16 min (97% of 16)
OUT Powell missed 3 since 1/20, out tonight
BACK Edwards back 1/20 after 9, 16 min since (103% of 15)
BACK Williams back 1/22 after 2, 9 min since (59% of 15)
NEW Dinwiddie 27 to 33 min over the last 5
NEW Gafford 22 to 28 min over the last 5
NEW Prosper 11 to 17 min over the last 5
DAL availability going into 1/27 · 1 day's restOUT Marshall missed 3 since 1/22, out tonight
OUT Lively II missed 6 since 1/15, out tonight
OUT Powell missed 4 since 1/20, out tonight
BACK Thompson back 1/25 after 2, 26 min since (97% of 27)
BACK Hardy back 1/25 after 3, 16 min since (97% of 16)
BACK Edwards back 1/20 after 9, 15 min since (98% of 15)
BACK Williams back 1/22 after 2, 6 min since (43% of 15)
NEW Gafford 22 to 29 min over the last 5
DAL availability going into 1/29 · 1 day's restOUT Marshall missed 4 since 1/22, returns tonight: 15 min (54% of 28)
OUT Lively II missed 7 since 1/15, out tonight
OUT Powell missed 5 since 1/20, out tonight
BACK Thompson back 1/25 after 2, 25 min since (92% of 27)
BACK Hardy back 1/25 after 3, 14 min since (91% of 16)
BACK Edwards back 1/20 after 9, 17 min since (109% of 15)
BACK Williams back 1/22 after 2, 7 min since (45% of 15)
NEW Grimes 23 to 29 min over the last 4
NEW Gafford 22 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Prosper 11 to 19 min over the last 5
DAL availability going into 1/31 · 1 day's restOUT Lively II missed 8 since 1/15, out tonight
OUT Powell missed 6 since 1/20, out tonight
BACK Marshall back 1/29 after 4, 15 min since (54% of 28)
BACK Thompson back 1/25 after 2, 26 min since (96% of 27)
BACK Hardy back 1/25 after 3, 12 min since (74% of 16)
BACK Williams back 1/22 after 2, 7 min since (45% of 15)
NEW Gafford 22 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Prosper 11 to 18 min over the last 5
DAL availability going into 2/02 · 1 day's restOUT Lively II missed 9 since 1/15, out tonight
OUT Williams missed 2 since 1/29, returns tonight: 18 min (124% of 15)
OUT Powell missed 7 since 1/20, out tonight
BACK Marshall back 1/29 after 4, 19 min since (67% of 28)
BACK Thompson back 1/25 after 2, 26 min since (96% of 27)
BACK Hardy back 1/25 after 3, 11 min since (67% of 16)
NEW Gafford 22 to 29 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 1/18 · back-to-backBACK Scheierman back 1/17 after 19, 4 min since (34% of 12)
BOS availability going into 1/20 · 1 day's restBACK Scheierman back 1/17 after 19, 4 min since (34% of 12)
BOS availability going into 1/22 · 1 day's restBACK Scheierman back 1/17 after 19, 4 min since (35% of 12)
BOS availability going into 1/23 · back-to-backBACK Scheierman back 1/17 after 19, 5 min since (40% of 12)
BOS availability going into 1/25 · 1 day's restBACK Scheierman back 1/17 after 19, 5 min since (44% of 12)
BOS availability going into 1/27 · 1 day's rest
full strength
BOS availability going into 1/29 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 2 since 1/25, out tonight
BOS availability going into 1/31 · 1 day's restOUT Horford missed 2 since 1/27, returns tonight: 26 min (90% of 28)
OUT Hauser missed 2 since 1/27, returns tonight: 14 min (69% of 21)
OUT Scheierman missed 3 since 1/25, out tonight
BOS availability going into 2/02 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 4 since 1/25, out tonight
BACK Horford back 1/31 after 2, 26 min since (90% of 28)
BACK Hauser back 1/31 after 2, 14 min since (69% of 21)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Dallas comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 111, shooting 48 percent and 33 from three, 26 free throws a game; Irving at 30 and Washington at 19 a game. Without Marshall (2 straight), Thompson (2 straight), Lively II (5 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 106, shooting 45 percent and 37 from three, 18 free throws a game; Tatum at 23 and Porziņģis at 21 a game. One day's rest.
So: Dallas wins, and the game turns on the line, where Dallas takes 26 free throws a game to Boston's 18 and the turnovers, Dallas giving it away 16 times a game to Boston's 12. Call it Dallas 113, Boston 112, Boston keeping it close.
1/17 vs OKC 106-98 — DAL notes
DAL won 106-98. DAL shot 49% (37 of 75) to OKC's 38%, 16 of 41 from three, and went to the line 22 times to OKC's 12 — 16 points from the stripe to their 8. Irving led with 25 (9 of 19, 3 of 8 from three); Washington added 16, Dinwiddie 16. The hinge was Q2, 41-17: DAL came in trailing by 4 and left it ahead by 20. Irving was the night's best plus/minus at +13.
1/20 @ CHA 105-110 — DAL notes
DAL lost 105-110. DAL shot 43% (38 of 88) to CHA's 41%, 6 of 32 from three, and went to the line 26 times to CHA's 18 — 23 points from the stripe to their 13. Irving led with 33 (11 of 24, 3 of 8 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); Gafford added 31, Washington 13. Q1 was theirs, 27-24, but the other 3 periods went 86-78 against them. Dinwiddie's -7 in 31 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/22 vs MIN 114-115 — DAL notes
DAL lost 114-115. DAL took 9 more shots (90 to 81), but shot 50% to MIN's 46%, 8 of 29 from three, and got to the line 19 times to MIN's 34. Irving led with 36 (12 of 21, 4 of 11 from three, 8 of 8 at the line); Washington added 30, Gafford 14. Q1 was theirs, 22-17, but the other 3 periods went 98-92 against them. Prosper's -12 in 25 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/23 @ OKC 121-115 — DAL notes
DAL won 121-115. DAL shot 53% (39 of 74) to OKC's 48%, 14 of 31 from three, and went to the line 36 times to OKC's 22 — 29 points from the stripe to their 16. DAL turned it over 20 times to OKC's 12, and OKC turned those into 9 steals. The glass went 43-33 for them. Dinwiddie led with 28 (11 of 14, 3 of 6 from three); Irving added 24, Washington 22. The hinge was Q3, 31-21: DAL came in trailing by 2 and left it ahead by 8. DAL trailed 60-62 at the half and won the second half 61-53. Irving was the night's best plus/minus at +16.
1/25 vs BOS 107-122 — DAL notes
DAL lost 107-122. DAL shot 44% (39 of 88) to BOS's 43%, 8 of 22 from three, and went to the line 28 times to BOS's 19 — 21 points from the stripe to their 14. DAL turned it over 12 times to BOS's 5. Irving led with 22 (11 of 23, 0 of 3 from three); Grimes added 20, Gafford 19. Q4 was theirs, 31-26, the deficit cut from 20 to 15, but the other 3 periods went 96-76 against them. They led by as many as 10. Grimes's -20 in 26 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/27 vs WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Dallas comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 112, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 26 free throws a game; Irving at 28 and Washington at 20 a game. Without Marshall (3 straight), Lively II (6 straight). One day's rest. Washington comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 101 a night and allowing 117, shooting 39 percent and 33 from three, 20 free throws a game; Poole at 21 and Kuzma at 17 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Brogdon (11 straight), Holmes (8 straight). One day's rest.
So: Dallas wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Dallas has been plus-1 a night and Washington minus-8 and the line, where Dallas takes 26 free throws a game to Washington's 20. Call it Dallas 117, Washington 107, Dallas by 10.
1/29 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 123, shooting 46 percent and 35 from three, 30 free throws a game; Williamson at 28 and McCollum at 25 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Jones (9 straight), Boston (5 straight), Payton (25 straight). One day's rest. Dallas comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 114, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 25 free throws a game; Irving at 26 and Washington at 20 a game. Without Marshall (4 straight), Lively II (7 straight). One day's rest.
So: Dallas wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Dallas has been plus-3 a night and New Orleans minus-5 and the defense, Dallas allowing 114 a night to New Orleans's 123. Call it Dallas 117, New Orleans 114, New Orleans keeping it close.
1/31 @ DET — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 113, shooting 46 percent and 35 from three, 20 free throws a game; Cunningham at 30 and Beasley at 19 a game. That is 3 straight losses. One day's rest. Dallas comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 119, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 23 free throws a game; Irving at 24 and Washington at 23 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Lively II (8 straight). One day's rest.
So: Dallas wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Dallas at 41 percent from three to Detroit's 35 and the defense, Detroit allowing 113 a night to Dallas's 119. Call it Dallas 115, Detroit 114, Detroit keeping it close.
2/02 @ CLE — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 127 a night and allowing 116, shooting 52 percent and 37 from three, 19 free throws a game; Mitchell at 30 and Garland at 28 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without LeVert (7 straight), Wade (4 straight), Okoro (8 straight). 2 days' rest. Dallas comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 120, shooting 49 percent and 42 from three, 24 free throws a game; Irving at 22 and Washington at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Lively II (9 straight). One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the turnovers, Dallas giving it away 15 times a game to Cleveland's 11 and the arc, Dallas at 42 percent from three to Cleveland's 37. Call it Cleveland 122, Dallas 114.
1/18 vs ATL 115-119 — BOS notes
BOS lost 115-119 in 1 overtime. BOS took 11 more shots (104 to 93), fed by 17 offensive rebounds, but shot 38% to ATL's 47%, 15 of 52 from three. Brown led with 24 (9 of 27, 2 of 9 from three); Tatum added 23, White 21. Q1 was theirs, 33-21, but the other 4 periods went 98-82 against them. They led by as many as 12. Brown's -9 in 43 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/20 @ GSW 125-85 — BOS notes
BOS won 125-85. BOS shot 53% (49 of 92) to GSW's 35%, 20 of 48 from three. The glass went 50-38 for them. Tatum led with 22 (9 of 20, 3 of 10 from three); Porziņģis added 18, Brown 17. The hinge was Q3, 43-24: a lead of 15 became 34, and the lead reached 45. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +28.
1/22 @ LAC 117-113 — BOS notes
BOS won 117-113 in 1 overtime. BOS shot 46% (41 of 90) to LAC's 52%, 19 of 50 from three, and went to the line 20 times to LAC's 13 — 16 points from the stripe to their 10. J. Brown led with 25 (8 of 15, 7 of 9 at the line); Tatum added 24, White 20. The hinge was OT1, 14-10: from level to 4 ahead. Kornet was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
1/23 @ LAL 96-117 — BOS notes
BOS lost 96-117. BOS shot 38% (35 of 91) to LAL's 47%, 14 of 41 from three. The glass went 42-53 against them. Porziņģis led with 22 (9 of 16, 2 of 5 from three); Brown added 17, Tatum 16. Q3 was theirs, 20-16, the deficit cut from 19 to 15, but the other 3 periods went 101-76 against them. Horford's -22 in 24 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/25 @ DAL 122-107 — BOS notes
BOS won 122-107. BOS shot 43% (44 of 103) to DAL's 44%, 20 of 52 from three, and got to the line 19 times to DAL's 28. BOS turned it over 5 times to DAL's 12. Tatum led with 24 (8 of 22, 4 of 12 from three); White added 23, Brown 22. The hinge was Q2, 34-20: BOS came in trailing by 4 and left it ahead by 10, and the lead reached 25. Pritchard was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
1/27 vs HOU — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 108, shooting 44 percent and 36 from three, 18 free throws a game; Tatum at 22 and Brown at 21 a game. One day's rest. Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 116, shooting 47 percent and 39 from three, 25 free throws a game; Green at 22 and Sengun at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Smith Jr. (11 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the line, where Houston takes 25 free throws a game to Boston's 18 and the glass, where Houston has been plus-5 a night and Boston minus-1. Call it Boston 115, Houston 111, Houston keeping it close.
1/29 vs CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 107, shooting 46 percent and 38 from three, 17 free throws a game; Brown at 22 and Tatum at 21 a game. One day's rest. Chicago comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 115, shooting 43 percent and 36 from three, 21 free throws a game; LaVine at 26 and Vučević at 16 a game. Without White (4 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 107 a night to Chicago's 115 and the turnovers, Chicago giving it away 14 times a game to Boston's 11. Call it Boston 118, Chicago 109.
1/31 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 126, shooting 47 percent and 35 from three, 28 free throws a game; Williamson at 29 and Murray at 25 a game. That is 4 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 12 a night. Without Jones (10 straight), Payton (26 straight), Robinson-Earl (2 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 110, shooting 44 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; Brown at 24 and Porziņģis at 23 a game. Without Horford (2 straight), Hauser (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 110 a night to New Orleans's 126 and the glass, where Boston has been minus-3 a night and New Orleans minus-12. Call it Boston 118, New Orleans 112.
2/02 @ PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Philadelphia comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 114, shooting 50 percent and 42 from three, 21 free throws a game; Maxey at 35 and Oubre Jr. at 21 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without George (3 straight), C. Martin (11 straight), Embiid (14 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 111, shooting 45 percent and 38 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brown at 25 and Porziņģis at 21 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest.
So: Philadelphia wins, in a game with no one edge to lean on. Call it Philadelphia 114, Boston 113, Boston keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
BOSAH A. Horford
DW D. White
JB J. Brown
JH J. Holiday
JS J. Springer
JT J. Tatum
JW J. Walsh
KP K. Porziņģis
LK L. Kornet
PP P. Pritchard
PO Porzingis
SH S. Hauser
DALDG D. Gafford
JH J. Hardy
KE K. Edwards
KI K. Irving
KT K. Thompson
MK M. Kleber
OP O. Prosper
PW P. Washington
QG Q. Grimes
SD S. Dinwiddie
BOS/DAL the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Tatum, White help Celtics pull away to beat Mavericks 122-107 in first meeting since NBA Finals
DALLAS -- — Jayson Tatum scored 24 points, Derrick White added 23, including Boston’s first 11 of the third quarter, and the Celtics beat the Dallas Mavericks 122-107 on Saturday night in the first meeting between the teams since the NBA Finals.
Jaylen Brown added 22 points as the defending champions bounced back from a 21-point loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night, their most lopsided defeat this season.
The Celtics shrugged off an early 16-6 deficit and led by as many as 25 points in the third period. White scored 16 in the period.
Kyrie Irving scored 22 points, Quentin Grimes added 20 off the bench and Daniel Gafford had 19 points and matched a season high with 15 rebounds for the Mavericks, who are 5-11 since superstar Luka Doncic was sidelined with a calf strain on Christmas Day,
The teams will complete their two-game season series Feb. 6 at Boston.
Takeaways Celtics: Kristaps Porzingis scored 18 points in his first game back in Dallas following the Feb. 10, 2022, trade that sent him from the Mavericks to Washington. Porzingis sat out his four previous visits, including Games 3 and 4 of last year’s finals, with injuries.
Mavericks: Down to two centers, backup Maxi Kleber fractured his right foot and left the game late in the third quarter. Kleber will be re-evaluated next week.
Key moment With Dallas trailing by 21 points in the final minute of the third quarter, the home fans had to fend off the first of multiple “Let’s go Celtics! Let's go Celtics!" chants.
Key stat The Celtics, NBA leaders in 3-pointers made (17.8) and attempted (48.9) per game, went 2 of 8 in the first period but finished 20 of 52.
Up next Both teams will be home Monday, the Celtics against Houston and the Mavericks vs. Washington.