Celtics are one game away from clinching. Who should win Finals MVP?

The only question left for the Boston Celtics appears to be who their 2024 NBA Finals' MVP will be.

It also may be the toughest one to answer. If anything has defined this particular Celtics' squad in this year's playoffs, it has been the spectrum of star-like performances. They are the NBA version of whack-a-mole: if one or two of their mainstays disappears on a given night, they can count on one or two others to pop up and make their presence felt.

That formula can make for some turbulent stretches while they figure out exactly who is going to answer the bell, and Wednesday night was no exception. What appeared to be a foregone conclusion nearly became an epic fourth-quarter collapse. But thanks to a collective closing effort, the Celtics hung on for a 106-99 win over the Dallas Mavericks that now gives them a commanding 3-0 best-of-seven series lead. They will have a chance to clinch the franchise's 18th championship on Friday, breaking their tie with the Los Angeles Lakers for most all-time titles.

They won Game 3 without their super sub in the first two games, Kristaps Porzingis, who was ruled out with a torn medial retinaculum — check your medical dictionary for further information — in his left leg, an injury suffered late in Boston's Game 2 win. Coach Joe Mazzulla gave Xavier Tillman his playing time in the series and Tillman responded with four rebounds and three points in 11 minutes, but Mazzulla put most of the load on his starting five, playing four of them — Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday and Derrick White — 40-plus minutes. 

The Mavericks finished the game shorthanded as well, star forward Luka Doncic fouling out with 4:12 left to play and Boston clinging to a 93-90 lead. Doncic was called for a