The Boston Celtics, fresh off their first Eastern Conference Championship since 2010 with a Game 7 in Miami over the Heat on Sunday night, now are out West getting set for Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors at 9 p.m. on Thursday night.
Boston has been led by Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Tatum won the Eastern Conference Finals MVP, averaging 25 points, 8.3 rebounds, 5.6 assists, and shooting 47.6% in that series. Brown put together quite a seven games against Miami as well, averaging 24.1 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.1 assists, including 38% from three-point range and 48.7% overall. Marcus Smart is also capable of scoring 15-25 points per night, and had 24 in the clincher on Sunday. Veteran Al Horford along with Grant Williams are threats from beyond the arc, and that opens things up for drives to the basket by Tatum and Brown who can also kick out to the shooters. Center Robert Williams III has been experiencing some knee soreness throughout the playoffs, and is questionable for Game 1 of the Finals. Payton Pritchard and Derrick White have also provided firepower off the Celtics bench, with White averaging 14.3 points per game in the last four against the Heat, including 22 in a Game 6 loss. Boston has also had a remarkable turnaround to their season as back in January at the halfway point of the regular season they were 20-21, and on January 28th sat at the .500 mark with a record of 25-25. Since that time they’ve only lost 12 games (six in regular season, six in the playoffs). That’s 38-12 in that time period (.760 win percentage).
The elite defense by Boston could be the difference in the series. Smart is well-equipped to defend Golden State superstar guard Stephen Curry, who is the best outside shooter in league history. The C’s have the best defensive starting five in the NBA in Smart, Brown, Tatum, Horford, and Williams III all getting votes for Defensive Player of the Year, with Smart winning the award. As a team they had the top ranked three-point defense during the regular season, where they are number two in that during the playoffs. They also rank second in opponents field goal percentage and are second overall in defensive rating during the postseason, and will need that same type of aggressive defense in order match an NBA best 114.5 points per game that the Warriors have averaged in their 16 playoff games.
Boston has also played Golden State tougher than any other team in the league, where they hold a 9-5 edge over the Warriors in the past seven seasons. Dating back to the first year under their head coach Steve Kerr in the 2014-15 season, the Celtics are the only team with a winning record against them during that time. Boston has won four of the last five head to head, including an impressive 110-88 victory at the Chase Center in San Francisco back on March 16. The last loss on the road to the Warriors was back in 2018. The green also own a 7-2 record away from TD Garden during this year’s playoffs, including winning two elimination games at Milwaukee and at Miami in the decisive game of the East Finals on Sunday. Golden State has played very well during this postseason with a 12-4 record, beating the Dallas Mavericks in five games to reach the World Championship round for the sixth time in the last eight seasons and will try to win their fourth in that span (2015, 2017, 2018). Sharp shooters Curry and Klay Thomson have led the way, with Kevon Looney, Draymon Green, and Andrew Wiggins rounding out their starting lineup. Jordan Poole has also emerged, averaging 18.4 points per game off the bench. The Warriors are 9-0 at home during these playoffs.
Here are the picks for the series by the Eastern Maine Sports staff-
Chris Lessner Celtics in 6
Jeff Hoak Celtics in 7
Cassidy Lessner Celtics in 7
Anthony DelMonaco Celtics in 7
Marc Calnan Warriors in 6
