Formula 1 drivers predict who will win the 2024 NBA Finals

The Canadian Grand Prix weekend is taking centre stage in the motorsport world, but the sporting attention is also drawn towards basketball. The 2024 NBA Finals get underway with game one on Thursday night between Dallas Mavericks and the Boston Celtics. The Formula 1 drivers have given their opinions on who will win the series.

Formula 1 themselves messaged the drivers for a response to the question. The majority of drivers selected the Dallas Mavericks, who will start the series at home and will play the seventh and deciding game at home.

Nico Hulkenberg, Max Verstappen, Oscar Piastri, Sergio Perez, Pierre Gasly, Logan Sargeant and Zhou Guanyu all backed the Mavericks, though some drivers highlighted their lack of basketball knowledge. That included Verstappen who said: “Uff I’m not really an NBA expert, let’s go with the Mavs”.

Esteban Ocon stood out as the lone supporter of the Boston Celtics with a simple one-word response. There were also some witty replies involved, including from Yuki Tsunoda. “I don’t know much about NBA, but whoever is currently P1 in the standings.”

George Russell also gave a classic pundit answer, referencing Netflix's Drive to Survive. “If it’s not the Mavs, it’ll probably be the Celtics” only to later ask fans in the comments how they rated his prediction. The attention of the Formula 1 drivers will turn straight back to this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix, but they will have time to watch the NBA finals as they are spread throughout the month of June.