Nobody expected this. Not after what just happened with Luka.
On February 6, 2025, inside a roaring TD Garden, the Dallas Mavericks shocked the Boston Celtics 127-120. It wasn’t just a win. It was a statement—one that came just days after Dallas traded away their franchise cornerstone, Luka Dončić, in one of the wildest moves of the season.
This wasn’t supposed to be a game. It was supposed to be a funeral. The defending champs were at home, coming off four straight wins. Dallas? They were barely above .500, fresh off losing three in a row, and figuring out life without the guy who carried them for years.
But something happened that night in Boston. Something bigger than just the score.
This game turned into a real NBA game breakdown moment, one of those matchups fans will point back to when talking about turning points. The Celtics vs Mavericks recap wasn’t just about numbers—it was about reinvention, revenge, and rising from the ashes of a blockbuster trade.
And the dallas mavericks vs boston celtics match player stats told a whole different story than anyone expected.
Match Overview
Nobody saw it coming — not like this. The Dallas Mavericks didn’t just beat the Boston Celtics. They outplayed them in every way that counted, walking away with a 127–120 victory at TD Garden.
It wasn’t smooth. It wasn’t clean. But it was loud. And Dallas showed the league that they could still fight, even without Luka Dončić.
The NBA scorecard analysis from that night reads more like a playoff thriller than a midseason rebound game. For fans tracking the basketball match result today, the numbers tell you all you need to know — Dallas brought the heat from tip-off to the final buzzer.
Game Summary Table
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas Mavericks | 32 | 30 | 35 | 30 | 127 |
| Boston Celtics | 29 | 33 | 31 | 27 | 120 |
Quarter-by-Quarter Breakdown
TD Garden was electric, but the Dallas Mavericks took the energy and flipped it on the Celtics. This wasn’t a game where one team got lucky in the fourth. It was a back-and-forth Celtics vs Mavericks 2025 recap—but quarter by quarter, Dallas just executed better.
The quarter-wise NBA score shows how the Mavericks built momentum and refused to let go. In Q3 especially, they exploded offensively, swinging the game away from Boston’s control.
Quarter Scores
| Quarter | Dallas Mavericks | Boston Celtics |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 32 | 29 |
| Q2 | 30 | 33 |
| Q3 | 35 | 31 |
| Q4 | 30 | 27 |
| Total | 127 | 120 |
Game Flow Insight
Boston came out strong in the second quarter, flipping a small deficit into a narrow halftime lead. But Dallas answered in the third. Their ball movement got sharper, the perimeter opened up, and they started getting easy buckets. That 35-point third quarter turned the tide for good. Boston simply couldn’t catch up after that.
Top Performer Highlights
The stars came to play, but it was Klay Thompson for the Mavericks and Jaylen Brown for the Celtics who lit up the floor. Alongside them, Spencer Dinwiddie’s stats show why depth mattered more than star power in this one.
This is where player box scores NBA fans love come into full display — and they prove how the new-look Mavericks worked as a complete unit.
Top Scorers – Individual Performance
| Player | Team | Points | FG% | 3P% | Assists | Rebounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Klay Thompson | Mavericks | 25 | 64.7% | 50% | 2 | 4 |
| Jaylen Brown | Celtics | 25 | 56.3% | 75% | 3 | 5 |
| Spencer Dinwiddie | Mavericks | 22 | 60% | 40% | 4 | 3 |
Full Player Box Score
If you’re looking for a true NBA stats comparison, this game delivered a complete shift in performance dynamics. Dallas’ roster looked like a team on a mission, while Boston’s box score analysis showed elite effort—but not enough to stop the wave of energy from the Mavericks.
Here’s the complete player stat sheet from both teams, color-coded with starters in green hues and bench players in yellow for easy scanning on mobile.
Dallas Mavericks – Full Box Score
| Player | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG% | 3P% | MIN |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Klay Thompson | 25 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 64.7% | 50% | 29 |
| Kyrie Irving | 19 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 41.2% | 33% | 32 |
| Daniel Gafford | 8 | 15 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 57.1% | 0% | 27 |
| Spencer Dinwiddie | 22 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 60% | 40% | 26 |
| Naji Marshall | 20 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 58% | 44% | 25 |
| Danté Exum | 15 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 62.5% | 66.7% | 19 |
Boston Celtics – Full Box Score
| Player | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG% | 3P% | MIN |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jaylen Brown | 25 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 56.3% | 75% | 34 |
| Jayson Tatum | 17 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 47% | 38% | 36 |
| Kristaps Porziņģis | 17 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 52% | 50% | 31 |
| Payton Pritchard | 21 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 60% | 50% | 33 |
| Sam Hauser | 11 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 46% | 40% | 23 |
| Al Horford | 9 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 50% | 33% | 21 |
Bench Player Contributions
Sometimes it’s the names you don’t expect who flip the game. This was one of those nights. Danté Exum’s Mavericks impact was off the charts—his +29 in just 19 minutes was a massive swing factor. Meanwhile, Payton Pritchard’s sixth man stats kept Boston close.
Key Bench Stats
| Player | Team | Points | Plus/Minus | Minutes | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Danté Exum | Mavericks | 15 | +29 | 19 | Huge |
| Payton Pritchard | Celtics | 21 | -6 | 33 | Key role |
Team Stats Comparison
If you just looked at the final score, you’d think it was close. But these numbers? They tell a different story. Dallas wasn’t just better — they were sharper, smarter, and cleaner. This wasn’t a fluke. This was team basketball, the kind you rarely saw in Luka-heavy isolation sets.
This side-by-side team comparison NBA today reveals something important: the Mavericks’ offensive efficiency soared after the trade.
Mavericks vs Celtics – Team Performance
| Category | Mavericks | Celtics |
|---|---|---|
| FG% | 55.7% | 51.7% |
| 3P% | 45.5% | 43.2% |
| Turnovers | 8 | 14 |
| Rebounds | 44 | 40 |
| Assists | 32 | 26 |
| Bench Points | 57 | 36 |
Key takeaways:
- Fewer turnovers. Dallas kept the ball moving, avoided the over-dribble, and made Boston pay for every mistake.
- Balanced scoring. Six Mavs hit double digits. That doesn’t happen when Luka’s soaking up 40% usage.
- Three-point efficiency. Nearly 46% from deep? That’s not luck — that’s spacing and timing.
The Luka Dončić Trade Effect
Let’s not pretend this didn’t hurt. Trading Luka shook the league. Fans were stunned. Teammates were shocked. But something strange happened in the fallout — the Mavericks started playing better basketball.
Without Luka, Dallas leaned on shared offense, quicker decisions, and role players stepping into bigger shoes. Instead of watching one guy dance with the ball for 20 seconds, it became about ball movement and spacing.
This wasn’t the team we saw a week ago. It was faster. More fluid. Smarter.
Key Luka-less upgrades:
- Exum + Dinwiddie combo brought downhill pace and control.
- Klay Thompson had freedom to work off-ball, like he was made for.
- Daniel Gafford’s rim-running was cleaner without Luka clogging drives.
- The whole team defended better — not because they had to, but because they could.
The Dončić trade Mavericks era might still be in its early days. But if this game was any indication, Dallas without Luka could be more dangerous than anyone expected.
Celtics Defensive Weakness: From Champions to Chased
The Boston Celtics came into this game with the swagger of defending champions. But their defense? It didn’t show up. Against a Dallas team that just lost its franchise star, the Celtics were expected to dominate on that end. Instead, they cracked. Repeatedly.
On-ball defense was late. Help rotations were sluggish. Perimeter contests? Rare. Dallas shot a blistering 55.7% from the floor and 45.5% from three — numbers that simply don’t happen against a locked-in Celtics unit. And it wasn’t just hot shooting. It was poor positioning, slow switches, and confusion during transition sets.
The most telling stat? Boston gave up 32 assists. That’s not just a breakdown — that’s a blueprint for how to pick them apart.
Compare this to the 2024 NBA Finals, where Boston’s defense suffocated opponents. They were crisp, physical, and smart. Teams barely cracked 100 points. Now? They gave up 127 to a Mavericks roster without Dončić. The drop-off is hard to ignore.
Off-ball defense — once a Celtics strength — collapsed under the pressure of Dallas’s movement-heavy attack. Klay Thompson had open looks all night. Danté Exum sliced through driving lanes untouched. Even Daniel Gafford feasted in the paint, thanks to late rotations from Boston’s bigs.
This wasn’t just a bad night. It was a system-wide failure. A real NBA defense breakdown from a team that built its identity on that very thing.
If Boston can’t fix its perimeter containment and off-ball discipline soon, especially against fast-paced squads like Dallas, their hopes of repeating look shaky.
Historical Context: From Finals to Redemption
The last time these two teams met in a meaningful setting, it wasn’t close.
Back in the 2024 NBA Finals, the Celtics steamrolled the Mavericks in just five games. Boston’s defense was nearly flawless, smothering Dallas into isolation-heavy sets that never had a chance. Luka Dončić put up numbers, but it was all uphill. The Celtics controlled the paint, outpaced the Mavericks on the wings, and clamped down when it counted.
They’ve had dominant performances before too — like their strong showing against the Knicks. Check out the Knicks vs Boston Celtics match player stats for another detailed breakdown.
Fast forward to this regular season clash, and it felt like a revenge game — not just for the franchise, but for every role player who got embarrassed last June.
The tables flipped hard.
This time, it was Dallas who outpaced and outsmarted. Their offense carved Boston up with slick cuts, transition passing, and patience. The Dallas vs Boston 2024 Finals box scores featured Boston limiting Dallas to under 100 points in three of the five games. Now? The Mavs just dropped 127 at TD Garden.
And the biggest contrast? Identity.
Dallas went from relying almost entirely on one player to unleashing a roster full of purpose. It wasn’t just about beating Boston. It was about flipping the narrative.
With new pieces and fresh movement, Dallas rewrote this chapter of their NBA rivalry history — and they did it in Boston’s house.
FAQs Section (LSI-Enhanced)
Who were the top scorers in the game?
Klay Thompson (25 points) and Jaylen Brown (25 points) led all scorers. Spencer Dinwiddie chipped in 22 for the Mavericks, making the player box scores NBA charts light up.
How did Kyrie Irving perform?
Irving had 19 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds, and 4 steals. His shooting was cold (41.2% FG, 33% from deep), but he managed key buckets and active defense in crunch time.
What were the overall shooting percentages?
Dallas shot 55.7% from the field and 45.5% from three. Boston wasn’t far behind, hitting 51.7% from the floor and 43.2% beyond the arc — a showcase of elite NBA shooting stats.
What was Danté Exum’s plus/minus?
Exum finished +29 in just 19 minutes. That bench impact speaks volumes about his energy and fit in the new Mavericks system.
When did Luka Dončić get traded?
Dončić was traded four days before the game — on February 2, 2025. The move shocked the league and instantly sparked debate about the Dončić trade Mavericks rebuild.
Final Takeaway
This wasn’t just another regular-season win. This was a transformation — and the Dallas Mavericks vs Boston Celtics match player stats proved it.
Dallas didn’t just beat the defending champs. They rewrote how they play the game. No Luka Dončić? No problem. What they lost in star power, they made up for in unity. The ball didn’t stick. Everyone touched it. From Dinwiddie to Exum, the Mavericks showed what team-based offense really looks like when it clicks.
The Celtics had no answer.
Statistically, Dallas was sharper, faster, and more efficient. They took better shots, turned it over less, and hit Boston right where it hurt — bench depth and perimeter discipline. The NBA game breakdown was clear: Dallas is adapting faster than expected, while Boston just got a wake-up call.
It’s early in the post-Dončić era, but one thing’s obvious — this team is more than fine. They’re evolving. And if this game was any sign of what’s coming, the league better pay attention.
The identity shift is real.
The Mavericks aren’t built around one man anymore.
They’re built to beat anyone. Together.
Henry Philip is the Lead Publisher at VCEMagazine.com, where he delivers in-depth coverage of the sports world — from player stats and game analytics to financial profiles of elite athletes. With a background in sports journalism and data analysis, Henry tracks performance trends and off-field ventures across major leagues like MLB, NFL, NBA, and international football.
Over the years, he has profiled top stars, broken down match-day metrics, and analyzed how athletes build wealth through contracts, sponsorships, and business ventures. His work bridges the gap between on-field performance and off-field financial strategy, helping fans understand the full picture of sports success.
Whether writing about a quarterback’s clutch stats or a baseball legend’s business empire, Henry’s focus is on accuracy, insight, and trusted storytelling.