The Boston Celtics took a 106-99 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday, and they are now on the verge of a sweep in the 2024 NBA Finals. This would put the Celtics in an elite list, as only nine other teams have lifted the Larry O’Brien trophy after going 4-0.
Coincidentally, the Celtics were the first franchise to do it in 1959 against the Los Angeles Lakers — the team they are currently tied with for most NBA trophies — 17. The 1959 trophy was their second ever, and the first of eight consecutive titles.
After Wednesday’s game, the Mavs find themselves in an extremely difficult situation. Meanwhile, history is on the Celtics’ side as teams leading 3-0 in a best-of-7 series are 156-0 all-time.
Boston has only lost two games in these playoffs so far, and it entered the Finals with plenty of rest after sweeping the Indiana Pacers. The Celtics have had to play the majority of the playoffs without a key player in Kristaps Porzingis — Luka Doncic’s former teammate — due to injury. However, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown showed they can handle Dallas without him as they went for a combined 61 points on Wednesday. The Mavs were very competitive but struggled to close out the game after Doncic fouled out with about four minutes remaining.
And just like that, the Celtics are potentially just 48 minutes away from a sweep and their 18th championship in franchise history. However, 4-0 is not something easy to achieve and the teams who have done it have needed a lot more than just a little luck. The Celtics roster that did it in 1959 had five Hall of Famers: Bob Cousy, Bill Russell, Bill Sharman, Tom Heinsohn and Frank Ramsey.
The second most recent team to go 4-0 in the Finals was Gregg Popovich’s San Antonio Spurs. They earned their 2007 title by sweeping the Cavs. That was their second title in a three-year period, and that team boasted Tim Duncan, Manu Ginóbili and Tony Parker.
And in 2002? That was the Lakers’ third consecutive title and they pulled off the sweep against the Brooklyn Nets with the help of the star duo of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal.
Here is a full list of teams that have completed sweeps in NBA Finals History:
