NBA FINALS – Gm 2: Celtics (1) @ Warriors (0) – 8:00PM, Sun, June 5, 2022

[Feed Your Head]

Media really trying to act like this is gonna be a backdoor sweep LOL. It's not guaranteed we win the series by any means but acting like the Warriors are suddenly going to score like they did in the 1st and third quarter and somehow make us play significantly worse for 4 straight games is absurd.

They're OLD. It's not surprising we closed the 2nd and 4th quarters better than them. On top of that, as soon as we stopped dropping on the switch and Al came out above the 3 point line, they couldn't do a **** thing offensively. Rob, as good as he was all season, dropping way back is why Curry got all those open 3s in the 1st quarter -- and they couldn't even get much separation from us.

People are delusional if they think the Warriors are suddenly going to figure out the massive size advantage we have. They can't fix that -- we're a matchup nightmare for them.

DW is also probably the best off ball defender in the series. Having him for Curry and Poole is a beautiful thing at this point.

Again, no guarantees we win the series but W’s are going to have to adjust how they handle Tatum, and think about blitzing Jaylen and hope he makes the right decision to get it back to Tatum or Smart

I don’t think you’ll see them blitz Jaylen, at least when Tatum is on the court. Too hard to play aggressive coverage with help on two guys.

I think they’ll back off box-and-one on Tatum and go more traditional Wiggins plus help, at least early in the game. But I really have no clue lol, impossible to predict.

[BK_2020]

Media really trying to act like this is gonna be a backdoor sweep LOL. It's not guaranteed we win the series by any means but acting like the Warriors are suddenly going to score like they did in the 1st and third quarter and somehow make us play significantly worse for 4 straight games is absurd.

They're OLD. It's not surprising we closed the 2nd and 4th quarters better than them. On top of that, as soon as we stopped dropping on the switch and Al came out above the 3 point line, they couldn't do a **** thing offensively. Rob, as good as he was all season, dropping way back is why Curry got all those open 3s in the 1st quarter -- and they couldn't even get much separation from us.

People are delusional if they think the Warriors are suddenly going to figure out the massive size advantage we have. They can't fix that -- we're a matchup nightmare for them.

Curry didn't make a single three on Rob. At least not in that 1st quarter.

[Geech]

GS has 3 healthy 2022 all stars in their starting lineup. Not to mention (and I am) former coach of the year Steve Kerr, who has multiple titles as player and coach. Wonder why they seem smug and overconfident? All reasons to make beating them better.

[darrendaye]

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[MaxwellSmart]

I was really happy with the last game, then I re-watched the game last night--not feeling as confident as I was....GS could easily win this series if The C's let their foot off the gas--which they always do.

[ConstableGeneva]

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[Neuromancer56]

As a Bucks fan, I'd be stunned if the Celtics don't win a championship this year. Your defense is just too good, and you're battle tested against the Nets, Bucks, and Heat.

[ConstableGeneva]

If Dubs want to turn this into a defensive battle, they probably use their starting five more and have less of Poole. Cs struggled rebounding against that group.

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[ConstableGeneva]

The 129.0 defensive rating of the Warriors was their 3rd worst the entire season (RS + PO). That wasn't even in our top 10 games in terms of offensive rating.

Celtics are 35-1 for the year when they score at least 118 points per 100 possessions. Dubs might want to start defending better.

[1st banana]

The 129.0 defensive rating of the Warriors was their 3rd worst the entire season (RS + PO). That wasn't even in our top 10 games in terms of offensive rating.

Celtics are 35-1 for the year when they score at least 118 points per 100 possessions. Dubs might want to start defending better.

What game was the lone loss? Jazz game early in the season I believe?

[ConstableGeneva]

The 129.0 defensive rating of the Warriors was their 3rd worst the entire season (RS + PO). That wasn't even in our top 10 games in terms of offensive rating.

Celtics are 35-1 for the year when they score at least 118 points per 100 possessions. Dubs might want to start defending better.

What game was the lone loss? Jazz game early in the season I believe?

You are correct. Game where Jazz hit a bajillion threes, even contested ones.

[soxfan2003]

Gary Payton 2nd may actually play tomorrow if Steve Kerr isn't lying. He says Payton is feeling better and is no longer just available for "special circumstances". I would think they play him at least a few minutes in the first half and more if he looks good. Kerr indicated he would probably ramp up his minutes throughout the series. GP2's biggest strength attacks Boston relative weakness(ballhandling). He averaged 2.8 steals per 36 minutes this regular season which is a lot of steals.

[Fierce1]

I'm expecting both teams to have all their players available tomorrow.

I just hope the Cs realize that this is a golden opportunity.

Win Game 2 and the series is likely over.

[RB34]

Lotta talk about the massive coaching advantage GSW have.

Happy Ime thoroughly out coached Kerr in G1.

[meatball sub]

GPII had a gigantic ice pack on his elbow while on the sidelines last game. That injury is really serious and not easy to come back from so quick. He might help them defensively but I don't think he'll be much help offensively which is their issue. GS best offensive players aren't their best defensive players so they always have to pick & choose how much offense they need to sacrifice to adequately defend.

[Mr_Mojo_Risin]

Looking at the simple stats for postseason 2022 from ESPN is an eye opening exercise. Those stats are for the games played by the 16 teams which are the cream of the NBA. Boston Celtics played more games than any other team (19).

For starters... the first thing I noticed the differential for personal fouls (PF) for the Celtics was exactly zero. Tatum should stop looking at the referees every time he makes a trip and focus on getting back on defense. It doesn't matter and will all work out at the end. However disparaged, the refs' overall effect on the Celtics is neutral.

Rob Williams is the only representative for the Boston Celtics in postseason stat leaders (blocks). Golden State (GS) is only represented by Stephen and Klay in 3-pointers made (naturally). All other names on those lists are now at home watching the NBA championship. Let that sink in... all those high scorers (and other metrics) are no longer in the playoffs. It doesn't appear the highest personal metrics correlates to winning playoff games.

For team stats... GS has the highest offensive scores (114.1 points per game) while the Celtics have the 3rd lowest defensive scores at 101.4 points a game. And the big BUT is... the Celtics lead at point differential at 6.4 points with GS 2nd at 4.4 points. So even though the Celtics are scoring roughly 7 points less than GS per game... the point differential is 2 points more. The take away is not scoring more... but focusing on both ends of the court is the better strategy. It is a nice have if Tatum can score 30 points a game but that isn't a predictor of success.

We all noticed GS's strategy on the first game was to double/triple team Tatum whenever he got the ball... but Tatum's passing resulted in made buckets.

Lastly... the Celtics as a team is making 37% of their 3 point shots while GS is making a percentage higher at 38%. Surprisingly, the Celtics takes one more 3pt shot per game than GS. However, this is the kicker... defending the 3 pointers doesn't appear to be GS's defensive strategy. Take a look at the 3pt% differential... Boston is at 4.6 while GS is a miniscule 0.8.

And this makes sense when you watched game 1. GS defensive strategy was to collapse the defense and dare Boston to shoot 3 pointers. The result was a record number of three pointers attempted... and Boston shot 51% from the threes. It was a turkey shoot out there.

Kerr probably noticed and may adjust the GS's defense to defend the perimeter which will then allow Tatum/Boston to attack the basket with more success. And GS does not use a big center. At that point... it may be game over as all of Boston's unsuccessful opponents discovered. These guys can play both sides of the court.

I wanted to point out one more thing... age may be a significant factor in this championship series. Al is the only important player for the Celtics in his 30's. The big three for GS are ALL in their 30's. Boston's constant pressure defense physically wear down opposing stars (looking at Kyrie & Kevin). Stephen and Klay are going to get theirs... but over seven games?

This series is going to be very interesting to watch.

Great post.

[ConstableGeneva]

GPII had a gigantic ice pack on his elbow while on the sidelines last game. That injury is really serious and not easy to come back from so quick. He might help them defensively but I don't think he'll be much help offensively which is their issue. GS best offensive players aren't their best defensive players so they always have to pick & choose how much offense they need to sacrifice to adequately defend.

This is pretty much the issue with 96.7% of the league.

Name another team that can field a playoff rotation full of players that have size and can play both ends without much of a hitch? Cs are uniquely built and we fans should be grateful Brad and co. had this vision and chose this direction.

EDIT: A healthy Clippers team might be the closest thing to what we have.

[Ben-N1ce]

If Dubs want to turn this into a defensive battle, they probably use their starting five more and have less of Poole. Cs struggled rebounding against that group.

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That was GS best lineup. Sadly when the Celtics got stops GS smashed them on the boards. Way way too many 2nd chance points. Looney Dominated that aspect. I think the Celtics will be fine against that if they rebound.

[The_Ghost_of_JB]

Ime needs to remind the team that they lost game 1 the last two series and they went on to win the series and that Golden State is perfectly capable of doing the same. I don't want to see complacent team tomorrow

[Tyakack]

Feels good not being in a do or die situation doesn't it? Let's stay there. Win game 2.