NBA: Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum lead Boston Celtics to record-breaking 18th title after Dallas Mavericks series win

The Boston Celtics became the NBA’s outright most successful franchise after winning their 18th championship with a 4-1 series win over the Dallas Mavericks.

This title breaks the joint record held alongside the Los Angeles Lakers for the most in NBA history.

Jayson Tatum claimed 31 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds in a 106-88 victory, while NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown took 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists on a landmark evening for the Celtics.

There was also a telling contribution from Jrue Holiday, who ended the match with 15 points and 11 rebounds.

Meanwhile, 35-year-old Joe Mazzulla became the youngest coach to lead a team to the championship since Bill Russell in 1969.

Speaking after the victory, he said: “You get very few chances in life to be great and you get very few chances in life to carry on the ownership and the responsibility of what these banners are, and all the great people, all the great players that came here.

“When you have few chances in life, you just have to take the bull by the horns and you’ve got to just own it. And our guys owned it.”

Tatum, as he received the trophy, said: “It means the world. It’s been a long time. I’m grateful.”

MVP Brown paid tribute to Tatum after what was the 107th career playoff game which the two have played together, which was the highest total of any pair before winning an NBA title.

“I share this with my brothers and my partner in crime, Jayson Tatum," Brown added.

While there may have been glory for the Celtics, it was a sobering evening for a Mavericks side which failed to extend the series.

That was despite the best exploits of Luka Doncic, who recorded an impressive 28 points and 12 rebounds on the night.

They at least managed to avoid the embarrassment of a clean sweep with a 38-point victory in the fourth game, but the ultimate prize eluded them.

Doncic had been struggling with chest, right knee and left ankle problems throughout the series, but did not shirk any responsibility in his post-series assessment.

“It doesn’t matter if I was hurt, how much I was hurt. I was out there,” he said. “I tried to play, but I didn’t do enough.”

Kyrie Irving was more upbeat afterwards, despite suffering a 13th defeat in 14 previous meetings against Boston since leaving them five years ago.

He said: “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’re competing for championships.”

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