No NBA team has come back from a 3-0 deficit in the playoffs. They are 0-156. Thirteen of the 287 teams (4.5%) that trailed 3-1 have won the series. And 57 of the 350 teams (16.3%) that trailed 3-2 have won.
This is the widening window of opportunity the Boston Celtics are attempting to avoid in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. With a victory on Monday night, the Dallas Mavericks should feel four times as confident about their shot at the title, since they will no longer need to think as the only team attempting to rally from a 3-0 deficit. They will merely need to become the 58th team to win consecutive elimination games.
“They are a desperate team, and they are playing probably a little freer,” said Al Horford, whose Celtics trailed the 2023 Eastern Conference finals 3-0 and forced a Game 7. “We know what that mindset is like.”
There is a freedom in knowing there is no room for error. The Mavericks have little other choice but to give it their all on every possession because one mistake could mean the end of all championship hope.
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