Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla insists his team are under no pressure to win back-to-back NBA championships, as they prepare for Tuesday's season opener.

The Celtics will lift the curtain on the 2024-25 campaign when they face the New York Knicks at TD Garden, where they will raise a record-breaking 18th championship banner.

Boston went a league-best 64-18 through the regular season last term, then cruised through the playoffs with a combined 16-3 record against the Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers, Indiana Pacers and Dallas Mavericks. 

They start the new campaign as favourites to claim a record-extending 19th crown, with Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford and Jrue Holiday forming an impressive spine.

Mazzulla, however, will not pile any more pressure on his team, the first to deliver the NBA championship to Boston since 2007-08.

"We're all going to be dead soon, and it really doesn't matter any more. So there's zero pressure," he told reporters on Monday. 

"You have an opportunity to carry the organization forward, to double down on the tradition and history of what this organization has. What else would you expect than someone expecting you to win all the time?

"It's not pressure. There's nothing anyone in this circle can do to me that's going to impact my identity and who I am as a person or a coach. 

"We're either going to win or we're not, and 40 years from now, none of you are invited to my funeral and that's it."

While Mazzulla is urging calm, he also expects his players to be ready for a challenging opening fixture against the Knicks, who reached the Eastern Conference semifinals last season.

"I trust who they are. I think they have an understanding of both 'this is what we accomplished' and 'this is what we're trying to do'," he added.

"All the intangibles that go into winning should carry over from one season to another season.

"You have to appreciate it. But you've got to know what got you there and if you forget what got you there, you'll never get back."

After an offseason of massive free agent signings, blockbuster trades and the captivating Olympic Games in Paris, the 2024-25 NBA season will tip off on Tuesday.

While player movement and new rosters have grabbed the majority of the headlines since June, the defending champion Boston Celtics remain mostly unchanged and poised to make a run at a repeat.

Jayson Tatum returns as one of the top scorers in the league, and Jaylen Brown is coming off a Finals MVP performance. Tatum, however, barely played for this year’s gold medal-winning Team USA squad – and Brown was left off the roster entirely – despite Boston teammates Derrick White and Jrue Holiday playing key roles in Paris.

These dynamics could cause a lesser team to engage in a power struggle, but the core of this Celtics team appears to be as cohesive as they come, with Brown and Tatum gladly passing the “primary scorer” baton back and forth in their seven seasons together.

The Celtics finished last season 64-18, then followed with a 16-3 post-season, making them one of the most dominant champions in recent memory. Sports books have forecasted Boston’s win total this season at 58.5, the highest in the league.

With Tatum and Brown still in the heart of their primes, the Celtics will be difficult to dethrone, but Al Horford, 38, and Holiday, 34, may begin to regress. Boston will also closely monitor the status of Kristaps Porziņģis, who underwent left leg surgery in June and may be out until the calendar turns to 2025.

Knicks, Sixers load up to compete in East

The Celtics’ most likely challengers in the Eastern Conference appear to be the New York Knicks and the Philadelphia 76ers, both of whom made attention-grabbing acquisitions in the offseason.

The Knicks lost Isaiah Hartenstein to free agency but made a massive trade to acquire Karl-Anthony Towns. The multi-talented big man joins a stacked starting lineup that includes Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby.

New York won 50 games last season before injuries decimated their play-off hopes. This year’s squad is undoubtedly more talented than last year’s, but how quickly can this group gain cohesion after losing three of last season’s top five scorers?

The Knicks will play in the NBA’s tip-off game Tuesday in Boston, where the Celtics will raise another championship banner.

The 76ers were successful in their gambit to accrue salary cap space for last offseason and made a massive addition in signing Paul George to a four-year max contract that includes a player option.

George teams up with former MVP Joel Embiid and rising star Tyrese Maxey on a team with title aspirations. Philadelphia also added veteran role players this offseason in Andre Drummond, Eric Gordon, Caleb Martin and Reggie Jackson.

The 76ers are built to contend this season but face a number of durability questions. Embiid announced last week that he will not play on back-to-back nights after missing 45 games last season. George, 34, played 74 games last season but averaged 47 games played over the previous four seasons.

Philadelphia have said that their sole focus will be on having a healthy roster when the playoffs start in April, so Embiid and George could have plenty of rest days during the regular season. 

While Philly and New York appear to be Boston’s most formidable challengers in the East, others are lurking just a tier below.

The Milwaukee Bucks expect the second year of the Giannis Antetokounmpo-Damian Lillard pairing to yield better results under coach Doc Rivers, while Tyrese Haliburton and a young Indiana Pacers team will look to build on last season’s Eastern Conference finals appearance.

James family history

While the Western Conference is loaded with championship contenders, a team likely outside the title conversation has stolen most of the attention this offseason.

The Los Angeles Lakers used the 55th overall pick in June’s draft on Bronny James, making him teammates with his father, LeBron James. The pair will become the first father-son duo to play in the same NBA game.

Bronny struggled in six preseason games, shooting under 30 percent from the field and racking up more turnovers than assists. Even if Bronny spends most of the season in the G League, the Lakers will almost certainly allow him to take the court with his legendary father at some point.

The elder James will celebrate his 40th birthday this season as the future Hall of Famer enters his 22nd NBA season.

While James seems to have defied the aging process over the last several years, Los Angeles will likely ease his workload and give more opportunities to Anthony Davis, Austin Reaves and DeAngelo Russell.

James and Davis missed just 17 combined games last season, and the Lakers will need a similarly healthy season to compete in a loaded West.

MVP race: West is best

Luka Dončić won last season’s scoring title at 33.9 points per game and guided the Dallas Mavericks to an NBA Finals appearance.

The Mavs added veteran sharpshooter and long-time Golden State Warrior Klay Thompson in hopes of a title run and will be banking on big growth from second-year center Derek Lively II.

Dončić opens the season as the betting favourite to win MVP, but he will have plenty of competition both for personal accolades and team success.

Nikola Jokić was voted MVP for the third time last season and enters the 2024-25 season as one of the favourites, although he would need a truly spectacular season to overcome voter fatigue and win a fourth MVP in a five-year span.

After the free agent departures of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Bruce Brown and Jeff Green the last two off-seasons, the Nuggets will need contributions from younger players and will hope Jamal Murray’s health improves as the season progresses.

For years, the Oklahoma City Thunder were considered a sleeping giant, and OKC has signalled over the past year that they are ready for contention.

The Thunder were the top seed in the West last season with a 57-25 record, then used the playoffs to identify weaknesses and gain experience. OKC acquired Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein in the offseason, giving them a better-fitting and more flexible roster, and the Thunder enter this season as the favourites in the West.

Hartenstein will miss the first six-or-so weeks of the season after breaking his left (shooting) hand, but once healthy he should help negate a rebounding weakness that doomed the Thunder in the playoffs.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is among the MVP favourites after averaging 30.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 6.2 assists last season while shooting a career-high 53.5 percent from the field.

As deep and talented as the Thunder are as currently constructed, they own a staggering amount of future draft capital and could become a juggernaut if they decided to trade for another star player.

The Minnesota Timberwolves turned heads with their run to the West finals last season and stunned the basketball world when they traded Karl-Anthony Towns for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo.

The decision to move on from Towns puts more of the offensive load on Anthony Edwards, whose scoring and efficiency have improved each year since being the No. 1 overall pick in 2020.

Minnesota made easy work of the Phoenix Suns last post-season, but the Suns will look to rejoin the contenders’ conversation as Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal enter their second season as a teammate trio.

Wembanyama: A matter of time

One of the most prevalent storylines entering 2024-25 is the continued growth of Victor Wembanyama in his second NBA season.

Wembanyama had one of the best rookie seasons in recent memory, with the 7-foot-4 center leading the league in blocks and finishing second in Defensive Player of the Year voting.

Wembanyama followed with an impressive run in the Paris Olympics and has hit all the early checkpoints of a future MVP.

Most experts agree that the San Antonio Spurs aren’t ready to compete for a play-off spot this season, but Wembanyama seems destined to become a top-five player, and his ascendancy could happen sooner rather than later.

Flounder for Flagg?

This year’s rookie class is full of questions, but prognosticators are bullish on several top prospects in the 2025 class, setting the stage for a race for the bottom.

Duke forward Cooper Flagg is projected to be a two-way force and is the consensus No. 1 prospect in the class after playing with Team USA Select Team over the summer.

Baylor’s VJ Edgecombe, along with Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper of Rutgers, have also got scouts excited in a draft class considered much deeper than 2024’s crop.

With one or more possible franchise-changers available in the 2025 draft, many of the NBA’s less talented teams will be content to sit at the bottom of the standings this season, especially in the Eastern Conference.

From the Washington Wizards to the Brooklyn Nets to the Portland Trail Blazers, there will be a handful of organisations focused more on the 2025 draft than their 2024-25 record.

Jayson Tatum is not going to discount playing for the United States at the 2028 Olympics, despite limited minutes this time around.

Tatum, a star of the NBA last season with the all-conquering Boston Celtics, had to settle for a bench role at the Paris Games.

He played 11 minutes in Saturday's gold medal game as Team USA saw off hosts France to take the Olympic crown for a fifth straight time.

Tatum did not play at all in two of the USA's games – the group-stage and semi-final meetings with Nikola Jokic's Serbia.

But that does not necessarily mean he would not want to feature for Team USA at the Los Angeles Games in four years.

"It was a tough personal experience on the court, but I'm not going to make any decision off [of] emotions.

"If you asked me right now if I was going to play in 2028, it is four years from now and I [would have] to take time and think about that.

"So I'm not going to make any decision based off how this experience was or how I felt individually.

"A lot of people text me and reached out and said 'Make sure this fuels you,' which I appreciate. There's a lot of people that care about me.

"I think the tough part is yes, you can use things to fuel you, but I'm still human.

"I've sacrificed and put a lot into this game and work really, really hard. So in the moment it is tough. You're not necessarily worried about fuelling for November or [whenever] the [NBA] season is, but like I said, it's something I'm going to take away from this and learn from this experience.

"It's definitely challenging and humbling at the same time."

Success in the men's basketball was one of 40 golds Team USA scooped at the Paris Games, as they topped the medal table with 126 overall (44 silver, 42 bronze).

China placed second overall, matching Team USA's tally of golds but collecting just 27 silver and 24 bronze. 

France might have fallen short in the basketball but they enjoyed a brilliant Games overall to finish fifth.

The Boston Celtics continued to celebrate their 18th NBA championship by rewarding star forward Jayson Tatum with a record-breaking contract extension.

The Celtics and Tatum agreed to a five-year supermax extension worth nearly $314million, multiple media outlets reported Monday.

The contract is the largest in NBA history, with Tatum qualifying for a supermax deal by being voted to the All-NBA First Team in 2022-23.

Tatum’s deal is the latest in the Celtics’ effort to keep their championship core in place into the foreseeable future, despite a massive luxury tax bill.

Multiple media outlets reported that Boston and Derrick White agreed to a four-year, $126million extension earlier Monday.

Finals MVP Jaylen Brown signed a five-year, $286million extension last summer. Kristaps Porziņģis and Jrue Holiday are both signed through at least the 2025-26 season.

Even before agreeing to Tatum’s extension, the Celtics were projected to be over the second apron luxury tax, which restricts roster transactions by the league’s highest-spending teams.

Tatum, 26, is already a five-time All-Star and has been voted to the All-NBA First Team in each of the last three seasons.

Tatum averaged 26.9 points, 8.1 rebounds and a career-high 4.9 assists last season while leading the Celtics to a 64-18 record.

He has helped Boston to two NBA Finals appearances and has already played in 113 play-off games.

In 513 career regular-season games, Tatum averaged 23.1 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists.

Kyrie Irving is confident the Dallas Mavericks can be regular championship contenders after their NBA Finals loss to the Boston Celtics came as a "bitter" ending to a "really positive journey".

Jayson Tatum delivered a magnificent performance in Game 5 with 31 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists, as the Celtics capped a dominant season by cruising to a 106-88 victory over the Mavericks on Monday to capture their first league championship since 2008.

It was a difficult night for Irving at TD Garden. Boston's All-Star forward and Finals MVP Jaylen Brown compiled 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists and played lock-down defence on the Mavericks star, who was held to under 39 per cent shooting in three of Dallas' four losses.

Irving, who spent two seasons with Boston before signing with the Brooklyn Nets in 2019, went just 5 of 16 from the field while managing 15 points, the third time in the series he produced 16 points or fewer.

But Irving was looking at the positives despite the 4-1 series loss and hopes Dallas will be back to go one better in the years ahead.

"We answered a lot of questions this year on what we were capable of doing and now it is just about being consistent," Irving said, per ESPN.

"I said that I wanted to be remembered as one of the best teams of this era and our last few champions have been a new one each and every year.

"So, I see an opportunity for us to really build our future in a positive manner where this is almost like a regular thing for us, and we are competing for championships. 

"From a spiritual standpoint, I think I enjoyed this journey more than any other season, just because of the redemption arc and being able to learn as much as I did about myself and my teammates and the organization and the people that I'm around."

After Dallas substituted its starters in the closing stages, Irving and Doncic exchanged an embrace and a few words on the sideline as the final seconds of the Celtics' victory ticked away.

"We said, 'We'll fight together next season, and we are just going to believe'," revealed Doncic.

Doncic battled injuries during the postseason and it remains uncertain if he will be able to represent Slovenia at the Olympic Games.

"I don't want to talk about what's next, man," Doncic said. "I have some decisions to make. I'm just trying to get a little bit healthier.

"It doesn't matter if I was hurt, how much was I hurt. I was out there. I tried to play but I didn't do enough."

With Doncic on the team, Mavericks coach Jason Kidd is optimistic there will be more NBA Finals appearances to come for Dallas.

He said: "For [Doncic] at the age of 25 to get to the Finals, to be playing his basketball at the level that he's playing...

"Now it's just being consistent. When you have one of the best players in the world, you should be always fighting for a championship."

Jayson Tatum says the Boston Celtics' 18th NBA title is a "night I will remember for the rest of my life".

The Celtics capped a dominant season by cruising to a 106-88 victory over the Mavericks in Game 5 of the NBA finals on Monday, capturing their first league championship since 2008.

After recording the league's best regular-season record at 64-18, Boston continued that fine form in the post-season, going 16-3 to earn their record-breaking 18th title, moving them above the Los Angeles Lakers.

After losing Game 4 on the road, the Celtics responded in style, with Tatum the standout performer, getting 31 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists.

"I mean, this is going to be a night that I will remember for the rest of my life, from the game, the celebration, these moments," Tatum said.

"Over the last couple years, we had some tough losses at home in the playoffs. We've lost the NBA championship at home in front of our fans. We had a chance to beat Miami in Game 6 a few years ago and lost that one.

"So, to have a big win - the biggest win that you could have in front of your home crowd - I felt like that was really important to go out there and do everything in my power to make sure we won this game tonight."

"It means the world," Tatum said on stage. "It's been a long time. And I'm grateful."

Kristaps Porzingis missed Games 3 and 4 with a leg injury but managed 16 minutes off the bench to help his team to victory in the decider.

He confirmed after the game that he would need surgery on the injury but did not want to miss out on the occasion.

"I think something could have happened, for sure, especially compensating now on the other leg now, which I just came back from," Porzingis told ESPN.

"There was definitely some added risk, but I didn't care. I was like, 'I want to give everything I can and then fix it after if I need to.'"

"Since last game, I've been thinking ... 'How can I get my body ready for next game?'. Like, no matter how it is. And today I was like, 'I'm going to try everything possible to get out there.'

"And, man, it feels great to be a champion."

Jayson Tatum delivered a magnificent performance in Game 5 of the NBA Finals with 31 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists, and the Boston Celtics capped a dominant season by cruising to a 106-88 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Monday to capture their first league championship since 2008.

Returning home off a 38-point Game 4 loss that extended the series, the Celtics bounced back with authority by leading the clincher from start-to-finish to put the finishing touches on an unquestionably title-worthy 2023-24 campaign.

After recording the league's best regular-season record at 64-18, Boston went 16-3 in the post-season to earn the 18th NBA title in franchise history, breaking a tie with the Lakers for the most by any team.

Jaylen Brown compiled 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists in Game 5 and was named Finals MVP. The All-Star forward averaged 20.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and five assists per game for the series in addition to playing lock-down defence on Mavericks star Kyrie Irving, who was held under 39 per cent shooting in three of Dallas' four losses.

Luka Dončić scored 25 of his 29 points in a dominant first half and the Dallas Mavericks rolled to a 122-84 rout of the Boston Celtics to avoid a sweep in Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Friday night.

Kyrie Irving added 21 points and Tim Hardaway Jr. scored all 15 of his in the fourth quarter for the Mavericks, who forced the series back to Boston for Game 5 on Monday night.

Dallas opened a 13-point lead after one quarter, were up 26 at halftime and led by as many as 38 in the third before both sides emptied their benches.

Dereck Lively had 11 points and 12 rebounds for the Mavs, and connected on the first 3-pointer of his NBA career midway through the first quarter.

The 38-point final margin was the third-biggest ever in an NBA Finals game, behind only Chicago beating Utah 96-54 in 1998 and the Celtics beating the Lakers 131-92 in 2008.

Jayson Tatum scored 15 points and Sam Hauser had 14 for Boston, which had its franchise-record, 10-game postseason winning streak snapped.

The Celtics shot 36.3 percent (29 for 80) from the field and were outrebounded 52-31.

The 35 points in the first half represented their lowest-scoring total in a half in Joe Mazzulla’s two seasons as coach. The 26-point deficit at halftime was Boston’s largest ever in an NBA Finals game.

Jayson Tatum views the upcoming NBA Finals as a chance at redemption for the Boston Celtics after falling short two years ago.

The Celtics swept the Indiana Pacers to reach the showpiece seven-game series, where they face the Dallas Mavericks.

With Game 1 of the much-anticipated series coming on Friday, Tatum looked back at the 2022 Finals defeat to the Golden State Warriors, using the disappointment as motivation this time around.

"It's a lot that myself, and we, can learn from that experience being in the Finals, and this time, this go-around is a lot different," Tatum said after Saturday's practice.

"Obviously, we've been there before, we came up short. And a great opportunity to make it to the Finals again.

"You don't always get a second chance, so really just looking at it as a second chance and trying to simplify things as much as we can."

The Celtics were eliminated in the Eastern Conference finals against the Miami Heat last year, losing in seven games.

That has prevented Boston from avenging their finals defeat to Golden State the year before, though Tatum is keen to make up for lost time.

He will have to do so against former team-mate Kyrie Irving, however.

"Obviously there were some ups and downs, but I think, for me, being a first-, second-year player, being around a superstar, essentially, every day and seeing how to navigate that space," Tatum said.

"And then obviously on the court, he's one of the most talented guys I've ever seen.

"So it seems like a very long time ago, but I've got a lot of great memories from having [Irving] as a team-mate."

The Boston Celtics return to the NBA Finals as a different team to that beaten by the Golden State Warriors two years ago, says their Eastern Conference finals hero Jaylen Brown.

Brown won the Larry Bird Trophy as Eastern Conference finals MVP on Monday, having helped the top-seeded Celtics complete a 4-0 series sweep of the Indiana Pacers.

In Game 4, Brown sank 10 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter as the Celtics recovered from a nine-point deficit with under nine minutes left for a 105-102 victory.

The Celtics have reached the Eastern Conference finals six times in the last eight years but this is just the second time they have progressed to the NBA Finals in that run. They last did so in 2021-22, only to be beaten 4-2 by the Warriors.

Brown believes they have become a better team for that experience, however.

"We feel like we're a different team than we were last year and the year before that," Brown said. 

"I know everybody wants to continue to pigeonhole us with what was happening in the past but we've had a different team every single year, different coaches, we've had like three coaches in the last five years. 

"Still people want to make it seem like it's the same, it's the same, it's the same.

"Time has gone by, experience has been gained and I think we are ready to put our best foot forward."

Jayson Tatum supported Brown with 26 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists on Monday, while Jrue Holiday had 17 points and Derrick White tacked on 16.

"It's special," Tatum said. "Even though we've been there before, most of us have, you don't take it for granted. We were excited.

"It was a hell of a team we just played, they made us earn every single game and we're extremely grateful to move on to the Finals."

Derrick White's tie-breaking 3-pointer with 45 seconds left sent the Boston Celtics into the NBA Finals for the second time in three years with a 105-102 win over the Indiana Pacers in Monday's Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals.

The top-seeded Celtics, who were ousted in seven games by the Miami Heat in last year's East finals, completed a sweep of this best-of-seven series by rallying from a nine-point deficit with under nine minutes left.

Jaylen Brown led Boston's comeback by scoring 10 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter and coming up with a key late block that preceded White's winning shot. The Celtics also received 26 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists from Jayson Tatum, as well as another strong performance from their backcourt duo of White and Jrue Holiday.

Holiday totalled 17 points and nine rebounds while White had 16 points on 7-of-14 shooting along with a game-high five steals.

The sixth-seeded Pacers were unable to extend the series while playing a second straight game without All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton, who injured his hamstring in Thursday's Game 2.

Andrew Nembhard led Indiana with 24 points and 10 assists, while Pascal Siakam posted 19 points and 10 rebounds.

The Celtics will face the winner of the Western Conference finals between the Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves, and will host Game 1 on Thursday, June 6. The Mavericks lead that series 3-0 and can advance at home in Tuesday's Game 4. 

A tightly contested game saw neither side lead by more than eight points until the Pacers put forth a 5-0 run, capped by Nembhard's 3-point play with 8:57 left to play, to take a 94-85 advantage.

Indiana led 98-90 with under six minutes to go before the Celtics began catching fire. After Brown hit two free throws and Tatum knocked down a 3-pointer, Holiday drove the lane and was fouled while getting a layup to go down following a made basket by Nembhard. Boston's veteran guard calmly hit the ensuing free throw to bring the Celtics within 100-98 with 3:54 left.

It remained a two-point game until Brown knocked down a floater with 2:40 left to tie the score at 102-102. Shortly thereafter, the All-Star forward rejected Nembhard in the lane as Boston's Al Horford grabbed the rebound with the contest headed towards the final minute of play.

Brown then found an open White in the right corner, and the valued guard drained a 23-footer to send the Celtics ahead.

Indiana had one final chance to force overtime, but Nembhard's 3-point try missed the mark and the Pacers failed to get another shot off. 

The Boston Celtics were indebted to Jrue Holiday after they moved one win away from reaching the NBA Finals with Saturday's victory against the Indiana Pacers.

Holiday converted a three-point play with 38 seconds remaining, then made a game-saving steal as the Celtics overcame an 18-point deficit to beat the Pacers 114-111 for a 3-0 Eastern Conference finals lead.

Indiana's Andrew Nembhard seemed set to claw the Pacers back into Game 3 late on, yet Holiday stepped across for a "trademark steal" to guide his side over the line.

"That's a trademark steal that he always gets with the inside hand," Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said of Holiday.

"He gets that a lot usually when a guy is coming down the sideline, but he got it in transition. He made a big-time play."

As Nembhard looked to cut inside the court, Holiday suggested he always knew what was coming.

"He's a right-hand driver," the Celtics hero said after the game, "and he'd been very, very aggressive all night."

Nembhard managed 32 points and nine assists but even that brilliance was not enough to outsmart one of NBA's best defensive players.

"I was trying to get a shot up," said Nembhard. "He got in front of me. I lost the ball, slipped. Turnover."

Jayson Tatum impressed for Boston with 36 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists and no turnovers in 44 minutes, yet he put all the focus on the match-winning Holiday.

"I mean, can't speak highly enough about Jrue," said Tatum. "The ultimate teammate competitor, obviously a champion, wasn't at shootaround today, he was sick.

"Dealing with chills and stuff like that. And we've all been there, how tough that is, to fight through it, and for him to come out there and lay it all on the line for us, make the game-winning play essentially, especially on the defensive end.

"Jrue is just a big-time player, and he made a tremendous play."

The Celtics can clinch their second NBA Finals appearance in three seasons with a win in Game 4 on Monday in Indianapolis.

League MVP Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder were both unanimous selections to the All-NBA first team.

Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic, Boston Celtics guard Jayson Tatum and Giannis Antetokounmpo of Milwaukee Bucks were also named to the first team, which was revealed Wednesday.

Jokic, who has won three of the last four MVP awards, and Gilgeous-Alexander were both listed on all 99 ballots.

Doncic fell one vote shy of joining them, while Antetokounmpo received 88 first-place votes and Tatum garnered 65.

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant, Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard and Los Angeles Lakers centre Anthony Davis were named to the second team.

The third team was made up of Lakers forward LeBron James, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis, Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton and Suns guard Devin Booker.

This is the 20th consecutive season James has been named to an All-NBA team since being included on the second team in his second season.

At 39 years old, he became the oldest All-NBA player in league history. He was also the youngest All-NBA selection as a 20-year-old back in 2004-05.

Jokic, who won the 2023-24 MVP award in a runaway with 79 of a possible 99 first-place votes, was named to the All-NBA first team for the fourth time to go with a pair of inclusions on the second team.

Gilgeous-Alexander, who finished second in MVP voting, was named to the first team for the second straight season.

Doncic made the first team for the fifth year in a row, while Tatum is on it for the third consecutive season.

Antetokounmpo has been on the first team each of the last six seasons after being on the second team the previous two years.

Jaylen Brown hailed the Boston Celtics' never-say-die attitude after his last-gasp 3-pointer teed up their overtime win in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals.

The Indiana Pacers were just 6.1 seconds away from a 117-114 road win in the opening game of the series on Tuesday, only for Brown to sink a 3 over Pascal Siakam from the corner to level things up.

Two Tyrese Haliburton free throws put the Pacers back in front in overtime, but Jayson Tatum scored 10 of his game-high 36 points in the additional period as Boston triumphed 133-128.

Jrue Holiday supported Tatum with 28 points, while Brown added 26. All three players finished with three steals apiece as Indiana committed 21 turnovers.

Speaking after the dramatic finale, Brown said: "Welcome to the NBA playoffs! You've just got to manage your emotions. Anything can happen. 

"It's not over until the final buzzer sounds. It's not over until it’s over. We found a way to win the game at the very end."

Holiday echoed those sentiments, adding: "We've seen crazy stuff happen all the time. 

"We don't think we've lost a game until we've actually lost the game. That's part of the reason why we were so resilient towards the end.

"A couple of turnovers, a great shot, a great look by JB, or at the other end if we make a couple other shots that were wide open it could be a completely different game. 

"We're just the type of team that's going to keep on fighting no matter how long and no matter what it takes."

The Celtics host Game 2 on Thursday as they target a first NBA Finals appearance since 2021-22, when they were runners-up to the Golden State Warriors.

Asked how Boston will approach Game 2, Tatum said: "Don't relax, it'll be different circumstances. The first two rounds we won our Game 1 by a wide margin, so maybe human nature played into that. 

"But tonight being a close game, going into overtime, we certainly felt like we should have won and we could have played better."

Jayson Tatum scored 10 of his 36 points in overtime and the Boston Celtics capitalised on some sloppy play by the Indiana Pacers for a 133-128 victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals on Tuesday night.

Jrue Holiday had 28 points and Jaylen Brown added 26, none bigger than his tying 3-pointer with 6.1 seconds left in regulation.

The Celtics finished with 11 steals - three each by Brown, Tatum and Holiday. They became the first team in NBA playoff history to have three players record 25 points and three steals in a game. 

Game 2 is Thursday night in Boston.

Tyrese Haliburton had 25 points and 10 assists for the Pacers, who scored 56 points in the paint against a Celtics team missing injured 7-footer Kristaps Porziņģis. The Pacers, though, committed 21 turnovers.

Indiana twice turned the ball over with a three-point lead in the final 30 seconds of regulation. Brown’s 3 from the corner with Pascal Siakam in his face tied it at 117.

Tyrese Haliburton sank three free throws after he was fouled with 1:46 to go in overtime to put the Pacers ahead 123-121, but Tatum completed a three-point play 34 seconds later to give Boston the lead for good.

Tatum’s 3 following another Indiana turnover with 43 seconds left extended the lead, and he hit two free throws with nine seconds left to seal the win.