After four games, the 2022 NBA Finals series between the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors is tied 2-2. Their recent game saw Golden State Warriors defeat Celtics to tie the series.
The Warriors and Celtics have taken wins in turns this series, and both teams can claim to have never lost back-to-back games the series. And while each game has been decided by double digits – the Warriors’ 10-point margin of victory in Game 4 was the closest thus far of the series – The Finals have been much closer than that, as indicated by the series standing. In fact, the Warriors have outscored the Celtics by a single point (422-421) through the first four games.
LAST TIME OUT: CELTICS 97 – 107 WARRIORS
Warriors fans were able to see a “vintage” Stephen Curry as he made seven threes, dropping 43 points in total. Andrew Wiggins had a career-high 16 rebounds and Green made 8 assists.
The Hoops saw their own Jayson Tatum deliver 23 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists as Celtics look to defy Warriors home advantage in Game 5.
The Warriors played from behind for the majority of the game, but unlike Game 3, the Dubs never let the game get away from them. They trailed by as many as seven points in the first quarter and Boston matched that advantage in the second and third periods, but the Dubs answered with yet another strong third quarter during which they outscored Boston 30-24.
The Dubs had a shaky start to the final period with some turnovers, and Boston’s Marcus Smart knocked down what seemed to be a back-breaking 3-pointer as the shot clock expired to put the Celtics up four with a little over five minutes left in the game.
But the Warriors didn’t fold. An Andrew Wiggins putback stopped the Celtics spurt, Thompson knocked down his fourth 3-pointer of the game to put the Dubs up for good, and a few minutes later Curry punctuated the 10-0 spurt by drilling a 27-foot 3-pointer from the right wing.
That shot gave the Dubs a six-point lead, their largest advantage to that point of the game. Curry, one of three Dubs players with at least 10 rebounds, added to the run with some late free throws, scoring 24 of his 43 points in the second half.
Thompson knocked down some big shots in the second half, as three of his five field goals over the final two periods either tied or put the Dubs ahead. And his other two shots came at a point of desperation for the Dubs, who faced their largest deficit of the quarters – seven in the third, five in the fourth – prior to Thompson’s midrange jumpers. Thompson finished the game with 18 points, 13 of those coming in the second half.
That the Warriors were in position to win had a lot to do with Curry’s third quarter performance. Curry knocked down several tough shots during the period, and his 14 points in the quarter was one of the top reasons the Dubs turned what was a five-point halftime deficit into a one-point advantage entering the final period. Curry made seven 3-pointers in the win, matching the most he’s made this postseason, with four of those coming in the third quarter.
GAME 5 PREVIEW
WARRIORS POV
So far, the 2022 NBA Finals have been very hard to predict. In the first game of the series, the Warriors were expected to win but they ended up losing their first home matchup since the start of the playoffs. In their most recent game, the Celtics were favored to win but the Warriors upset the bookies this time.
On Monday, the series moves back to California, and once again the home team is the favorite. Are we going to see the warriors fulfill bookmakers’ expectations this time?
It sure seems so, for several reasons. First of all, it seems that Steph Curry is okay. The injury he suffered in Game 3 obviously wasn’t too serious, even though it did look scary. The evidence that he’s 100% fit is that in the following game, he put away 43 points – his best offensive performance since the start of the NBA Playoffs.
Another reason why the Warriors are favored to win on Monday is that it’s a great opportunity to get a lead in the Finals. The game is played on their turf, while Game 6 is played in Boston three days later. Losing on Monday would mean big problems for the Warriors. In that case, they’d have to go to TD Garden to try and beat the Celtics once again.
CELTICS POV
If they beat the Warriors in California, they will take a 3-2 lead in the series, which then returns to TD Garden on Thursday. That said, winning on Monday would likely take Boston much closer to the NBA title.
Sure, it’s great motivation for the Celtics but the question is whether they have it in them to beat the Warriors in San Fran. Well, they already did it once in the series opener winning 120-108 despite being +140 underdogs before the game.
That was their fifth straight win over the Warriors on the road. The Californians ended Boston’s run in the following game, but the fact is that this team tends to do well at Chase Center.
WHO HAS BEEN THE MVP OF THE SERIES SO FAR?
Robert Duff writes: “Curry is clearly the MVP of this series. He’s carrying the Warriors on his back, bad leg and all. No other Golden State player scored more than 18 points in Game 4. The public loves a romantic story. New York Knicks fans still wax poetic about how an injured Willis Reed willed New York to an NBA title. Everyone will want to get on the Steph bandwagon. Look for that action to move the number on Golden State.”
WIN PROBABILITIES
ESPN gives Boston Celtics a 51.8% win probability.
FiveThirtyEight gives Boston Celtics a 51% win probability.
Praizsports gives Warriors a 50.9% win probability.