No Luka Doncic for the 16th straight game. Dereck Lively II in a giant walking boot. Reigning Western Conference champion Mavericks wobbling in play-in territory. In those and other vivid ways, much had changed in the 222 days since Dallas and Boston last met,

As well as Kyrie Irving has played, the hobbled Mavericks have been a bottom-seven offense over the past month, minus Luka Dončić.

The Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks will meet in Dallas on Saturday (5:30 p.m. EST on ABC) in a rematch of the 2024 NBA Finals. Boston defeated Dallas in five games for its 18th championship victory.

The Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics met in Dallas on Saturday for their first matchup since last season's NBA Finals. Dallas was missing many key pieces, including starters Luka Doncic and Dereck Lively II, while Boston was wrapping up a four-game road trip.

The NBA champion Boston Celtics dominated the Dallas Mavericks in a Finals rematch on Saturday as the Houston Rockets took the Cleveland Cavaliers down a peg and Victor Wembanyama ended a "priceless" week in Paris with a defeat.

Dallas will face the defending champion Boston Celtics for the first of two matchups in a 12-day period on Saturday.

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.

The Celtics end their four-game road trip on a high note with a 122-107 win in a Finals rematch vs. a shorthanded Mavs team. Jayson Tatum: 24 points, 6 rebounds, Jaylen Brown: 22

Victor Wembanyama's "priceless" week in Paris ended in defeat Saturday as Tyrese Haliburton's hot shooting fired the Indiana Pacers to a 136-98 NBA victory over the San Antonio Spurs.

The Celtics have another tough challenge to end their road trip on Saturday when they play the Dallas Mavericks in what will be a Finals rematch from last summer.