Isiah Thomas shouts out to proteges Kyrie Irving and Jaylen Brown ahead of their NBA Finals faceoff: "Proud of both of you!"

Kyrie Irving and Jaylen Brown will be two of the headliners of the upcoming NBA finals. Former NBA legends are excited to see the stars go to battle, including ex-Detroit Pistons great Isiah Thomas.

Thomas has been long a mentor and advisor to the two athletes, dating back to their college years. He took to Twitter to give a shout-out to his proteges:

“So very happy for two of my favorite people in the @nba Finals @KyrieIrving @dallasmavs Jaylen Brown @FCHWPO @celtics good luck gentleman, proud of both of you!!”

It will be Jalen Brown's second NBA finals appearance with the Boston Celtics, who have only lost twice during the playoffs. He was part of the Celtics team that lost to the Golden State Warriors in 2022.

Meanwhile, Irving is going to his fourth NBA finals with the Dallas Mavericks, who have not lifted the Larry O'Brien Trophy since 2011. He won the title against the Warriors with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016 and was also part of the two losses to the Warriors in 2015 and 2017.

Thomas knows a thing or two about playing in the NBA finals himself. He led the Detroit Pistons to NBA championships in 1989 and 1990, being named Finals MVP in 1990. He also helped Detroit make the finals in 1988, where they lost to the 'Showtime' Lakers in seven games. The Lakers had a loaded roster with Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and James Worthy.

Shaq predicts Kyrie Irving and Mavs will win NBA Finals

On “Inside the NBA” Shaquille O’Neal predicted the Kyrie Irvings' Dallas Mavericks will take home the 2024 NBA title against the Boston Celtics.

“The Celtics do not have three or four guys that can guard Luka," Shaq said. "I like Dallas in this series. I like the way they're playing."

O'Neal further said that the Celtics' defense does not have enough stoppers to slow down Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic:

"I don’t see anyone on Boston dealing with (Luka). Maybe Tatum, but if I’m Boston, I don’t want to get Tatum or Brown in foul trouble and I think Jrue Holiday is too little."

Doncic had success against the Celtics this season, despite Dallas losing both matchups. He scored 37 points in their second matchup in March and dropped 33 in their January meeting.

The Dallas team is now playing at a much different level due to their revamped roster after the P.J. Washington trade at the deadline. Kyrie Irving will also have extra motivation going up against his old team.