Boston Celtics will meet the Golden State Warriors in Wednesday’s action of the NBA Finals. The home side managed to get back from San Francisco with a win, and they want to remain confident on their court. The visitors bounced back after losing in the series opener and hope to continue in the same fashion.
Boston moved the series home in a tie and now wants to capitalize on playing in front of their fans. However, they need to do much better in the offense compared to their latest display on Sunday evening. On the other hand, Golden State didn’t allow another defeat at home. The away side wants to pick up where it left off and get the home-court advantage back.
Boston Celtics – Will they be confident at home?
A brilliant last quarter of Game 1 brought the Celtics a big victory on the road, but they were far from repeating the same success. They go to this one after losing 107-88 on Sunday evening, and the series is now leveled. Boston trailed by just two points at halftime, but their poor display in the third quarter cost them a chance to win again. The Celtics were not good enough in shooting, having a 37.5 field goal percentage. They were better from the three-pointer area, hitting 40.5% of their shots, but that wasn’t enough for a positive outcome. Boston also had seven turnovers more than their rivals, which decreased their chances of winning.
Jayson Tatum leads Boston’s offense in the post-season with 26.3 points per match, followed by 6.6 rebounds, a team-high 6.1 assists, and 1.2 steals. Jaylen Brown contributes to the Celtics’ offense with 22.7 pts and 6.8 rebs per game, while Marcus Smart scores 14.9 points and has six assists. Al Horford tops the rebounds charts with 9.3 per contest and averages 12.1 points. The Celtics won’t have any selection issues ahead of this encounter, and they can count on all players on the roster.
Expected Line-Up: Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Al Horford, Robert Williams III
with best odds
Golden State Warriors – Can they celebrate another win?
The Warriors managed to bounce back after a defeat in Game 1 and level the series before going to Boston. They made the key difference in the third period when they held the Celtics to only 14 points while scoring 35. At that point, Boston was unable to turn around the result as they did in the first match. Golden State had a pretty good 45.3 field goal percentage, while their success rate from the three-point area was the same as Boston’s – 40.5%. The Warriors also controlled their number of turnovers while having ten steals more than the Celtics.
Stephen Curry continues to dominate Golden State’s offense with 26.6 points, six assists, five rebounds, and a team-high 1.3 steals per match. Klay Thompson has produced 19.1 pts in the post-season, while Jordan Poole averages 17.8 points and 4.3 assists. Draymond Green is the team’s best assistant with 6.3 per game, while Andrew Wiggins contributes to the Warriors’ offense with 15.8 pts. Regarding the availability issues, James Wiseman is out of the contest, while Andre Iguodala is listed as questionable.
Expected Line-Up: Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, Draymond Green
Expert Pick #1 – Golden State Warriors +3.5 @-110
I get the case where the Celtics are favored at home, but they could have easily been 2-0 down in this series. On the other hand, the Warriors suffered just five defeats in their last 23 road games overall, and I see them covering the number in this one. That’s why I’m going to back the visitors ATS as my first pick.
Expert Pick #2 – Under 212.5 @-110
Game 2 was pretty inefficient, and I think this one shouldn’t be much different. Boston has a tight defense, while Golden State also did a great job in the back on Sunday evening. Therefore, I’ll take the Under as my second bet.
Expert Pick #3 – Boston Celtics Under 107.5 @-105
Consequently, I don’t believe the Celtics will produce more than 107 points in this encounter. They would need to increase their percentages a lot compared to the latest match, and Golden State should keep them under the margin. The odds are also a bit higher than for the first two picks.
