Game Time: 9:00 PM ET, Sunday, June 2nd, 2022 

Venue:   Chase Center, San Francisco, California  

Where to Watch:  ABC

DraftKings:  Warriors -3.5; O/U 210.5

Fanduel:  Warriors -3.5; O/U 211

BetMGM: Warriors -3.5; O/U 210.5

Celtics: 51-31, 2nd place Eastern Conference

Warriors: 53-29, 3rd place Western Conference

The 2022 NBA Finals.  The matchup has been anticipated… but has taken the gambling world by surprise.  The top future bets to make the NBA Finals were the Phoenix Suns and the Milwaukee Bucks.  NBA fans have been conditioned to see rematches in the postseason… Or maybe just to see who they expected to be there.  Not this year.  This year the Boston Celtics had a barely losing record in the first half of the season… Then they turned it on BIG TIME… and rose to 2nd in the Eastern Conference.  This year the Golden State Warriors spent time at #1 and time at #2 in the Western Conference… before settling into #3 by the opening tip of the Playoffs.  The Matchup is set… The Boston Celtics vs the Golden State Warriors!  It is going to be a defensive rumble with some offensive thrills.  So, … Who is the Great betting opportunity for Game 1?... Who will win the series?... Will the spreads get covered?  Will the Celtics ever lose two games in a row?... Are the Warriors just a dormant dynasty that has been reawakened.  All this AND MORE… when we check the numbers.

The Storylines in this series will cause the TV talking heads to lose their F’ing minds!  Celtics PG Marcus Smart will have to defend Warrior’s legend PG Stephen Curry… and earlier in the season while diving for a loose ball, Marcus Smart made contact with Steph’s leg and caused Steph to miss the rest of the regular season.  Warrior’s head coach Steve Kerr called it a “dirty play”... He was wrong then… Will that animosity affect now?  Warriors SF/ PF Andrew Wiggins is a former #1 overall pick in the NBA draft… He finally made good on that promise by becoming a first time all-star and legit 2-way player.  Can he handle Celtics First Team NBA SF Jayson Tatum?  It is a bigger question than you can imagine… It is the matchup that will decide success in Game 1 without a doubt.  The Center position could favor either team.  Celtics Center Robert Williams III is a beast… with an injury that comes and goes… Warriors C Kevon Looney is not a beast… but has become a skilled veteran after several years of everyone seeing him as a space filler.  Both Centers are better at defense and rebounding than on offense… How does that help either side?  PF Draymond Green is a future HOF veteran who will get there because of his defense, assists, and longevity.  Celtics PF Al Horford is right on the cusp of HOF consideration… He has turned-in his dominant offensive game for a well-rounded two-way standing.  Al Horford has played the most NBA Playoff games in History without ever making an NBA Finals… That streak is broken.  Is his HOF push centered around getting a ring… or simply building more longevity?  So many story lines and I haven’t even mentioned the pile of quality shooting guards on each team that will have a say in the final score!   We also have a rookie Finals Head Coach in the Celtic’s Ime Udoka… while the Warriors Head Coach Steve Kerr has paced the NBA Finals sideline in 6 of the last 8 seasons!   

If right now you told me the Warriors would sweep because of 3-point percentage and defense… I would see it.  If you told me the Celtics would sweep because of defense and quality young scorers that have come into their own… I could see that too!  The numbers… The prediction next.

The Boston Celtics have won 6 of their last 10 games.  5 Over and 5 Under.  The Celtics should not fear Steph Curry and Klay Thompson… They just spent 18 NBA Playoff games beating the likes of Kevin Durant & Kyrie Irving, Giannis Antetokounmpo & JRue Holiday, Jimmy Butler & Bam Adebayo.  The Celtics just have handled and beat 4 real MVP candidates, 3 real All-Star duo’s, two real defenses, and a variety of Head Coaches from Rookie to Champion, to multiple time Champion and most experienced.  The Celtics beat the Heat 100-96 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Playoffs to advance to the NBA Finals.  They got 26 points from SF Jayson Tatum, 24 points from SG Jaylen Brown and 24 points from PG Marcus Smart.  That is the formula for Boston Wins… but to beat the Warriors they will have to score MORE than 100 points every game.  Boston had an overlooked problem in Game 7 because they got the win… but SF Jayson Tatum had a serious case of Alligator arms.  He airballed a 3-pointer and simply missed 4 layups while looking for foul calls he did not get.  Jayson ended Game 7 going 9 of 21 from the field. That will not do against the Warriors.  He has to finish layups if he expects any Finals wins, let alone the series.  C Robert Williams III was quiet on offense and only played 14 minutes in Game 7.  He needs rest and treatment because he must push the Warriors along the frontline.  SG Derrick White is a special player.  When the Celtics add him to the mix they get positive results.

The Golden State Warriors have won 7 of their last 10 games.  6 Over and 4 Under.  The Warriors have a near perfect combination of defense and offense.  Their challenge will be to keep getting that offense against the Celtics' FIRST PLACE defense.  The Warriors are also remarkably deep.  Head Coach Steve Kerr has made them that way by playing everybody all season long.  The result is young guys who not only don’t shrink when they replace a star player… sometimes they excel.  The Warriors DEEP worry should be that in these 2022 Playoffs they beat 3 teams that had serious deficiencies that the Celtics do not have.  The Mavericks have one of the league’s best players… but Luka is surrounded by role players at best.  The Memphis Grizzlies were playing their first season of being a full team and had youth and inexperience at almost every position.  The Grizzlies also lost their star Ja Morant to injury halfway through.  The Denver Nuggets only have league MVP Nikola Jokic… seriously… They were missing their #2 and #3 best players… Nikola was playing 3 ½ on five all the way through the series… and he was able to win 1 of the games!!  The Warriors will now have to contend with a Celtics team with a legit Star Duo… and 5-6 other guys that can start and play well in the NBA.  In game 5 against the Dallas Mavericks to earn the birth to the NBA FInals… The Warriors won 120-110.  They got 32 points from SG Klay Thompson… they also had 5 other guys score in double figures… Curry 15, Wiggins, 18, Green 17, Poole 16, Looney 10… It was an onslaught.  The deep bench finished the game.  The wild strength of the Warriors is that their big scorers and their big defenders are different guys… They can match up to almost anything put on the floor by scoring AND defending!  They also have home court adfavantage in the Finals… whoa!

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Boston is 63-37 on the season, but 56-42-2 ATS.  They have logged 48 Over, 50 Under, and 2 Push.  They are 30-20 in road games.

Golden State is 64-33 on the season, but 50-44-4 ATS.  They have notched 45 Over, 51 Under, and 2 Push.  They are 39-10 in home games.

Boston is 12th in scoring with 111.8 points per game, 5th in rebounds with 46.1 per game, and 11th in AST/TO ratio with 1.8.  On defense they Rank FIRSTwhile holding opponents to 104.5 ppg… and blocking 5.8 shots per game (2nd in the league)

Warriors: The Warriors are 15th in the league in scoring with 111.0 points per game, 7th in rebounds with 45.5 per game, and 12th in AST/TO ratio with 1.8.  On defense they rank 3rd in the league while allowing 105.5 ppg from opponents.  

 

Our prediction for Thursday, June 2nd is…..    Warriors 118 - Celtics 100’

Yes, the prediction is a big easy win for the Warriors.  The Warriors are beasts at home… Plus the Celtics lost the first game of this season’s playoff series against both the Milwaukee Bucks and the Miami Heat.  Head Coach Ime Udoka has a knack for adjustment IN THE NEXT GAME… During a loss there's not much he can do.  The Warriors will get stops and hit shots.  That is what we are pretty sure of.  The Celtics will not hit their shots until there is some heat under their skin.  

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3 of 3 games played at Golden State in this latchup have gone UNDER the last 3 seasons.

Boston is 5-1 against Golden State ATS the last 3 seasons.

Boston is 32-16 ATS in road games this season.

Golden State is 47-26 ATS when revenging a same season loss 

Boston:  They are banged up… but listing no one of any significance on the injury list.  Players will play… Robert Williams and Marcus Smart will play.  If they hurt, that is their business.

Warriors: PG Gary Payton II (elbow) Quest, SF Otto Porter JR (foot) Quest… Fortunately for the Warriors both these players are luxury players.  They are helpful if they can play… but the team has no less than 2 better options to put on the floor if they miss a game. 

Celtics: SF Jayson Tatum, PF Al Horford, C Robert Williams III, SFG Jaylen Brown, PG Marcus Smart

Warriors: SF Klay Thompson, PF Andrew Wiggins, C Draymond Green, SG Jordan Poole, PG Stephen Curry

Celtics: Ime “Best defense is my doing!” Udoka

Warriors: Steve “Another season, another Finals” Kerr