Boston Celtics will take on the Golden State Warriors in Thursday’s action of the NBA Finals. The home side needs a win to stay in the game for the trophy, and they will try to bounce back. The visitors are one step away from the success, and they hope to return home with a vital victory.
Boston failed to repeat the success from Game 1 in San Francisco, and they don’t have the right for any mistakes. The hosts want to celebrate in front of their fans and bring this series to Game 7. On the other hand, Golden State has the chance to end the NBA Finals on the road. The away side looks forward to celebrating again and lifting the trophy after this encounter.
Boston Celtics – Can they extend the series?
The Celtics managed to stop Stephen Curry in the previous match, but that wasn’t enough for a positive result. They lost 104-94 in San Francisco and got into a tough situation, being 3-2 down in the series. Boston was ten points down at halftime, but they returned to the game after an excellent third period. Nevertheless, Golden State didn’t allow the same scenario as in the series opener. Despite hitting 34.4% of their three-pointer attempts, the Celtics had a poor field goal percentage overall, standing at 41.3. They also failed to capitalize on the dominance in the paint since they had 11 turnovers more than the Warriors.
Jayson Tatum has been the most efficient player for Boston in the post-season with 26.2 points, and at the same time, the team’s top assistant with 6.1. Jaylen Brown has produced 22.6 pts per game, followed by 6.9 rebounds, while Marcus Smart averages 15.8 pts and 5.7 assists. Al Horford has a team-high 9.1 rebounds and scores 11.7 points per contest. Thanks to an injury-free roster, the Celtics won’t have any selection issues.
Expected Line-Up: Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Al Horford, Robert Williams III
with best odds
Golden State Warriors – Will they return home with a trophy?
Thanks to two straight victories, the Warriors are just one win away from the NBA title. After beating the Celtics on the road, they regained the home-court advantage with a 104-94 triumph. Although Golden State dropped a double-digit lead in the third quarter, they kept their focus in the final period to clinch an important win. Despite hitting just 22.5% of their three-pointer shots, the Warriors had a better field goal percentage than Boston, standing at 46.6. Having eight rebounds less than the Celtics didn’t prevent them from securing a positive result since they kept the number of turnovers to just seven.
Stephen Curry didn’t have his best display on Monday evening, but he’s still leading the Warriors’ offense with 27 points on average. Klay Thompson produces 19.4 pts, while Jordan Poole contributes to Golden State’s offense with 17 points per match. Andrew Wiggins scores 16.4 pts on average, while Draymond Green tops the team’s assists charts with 6.2. Besides James Wiseman, who is still out of the contest, the Warriors might not count on Otto Porter Jr. and Andre Iguodala since they are listed as questionable.
Expected Line-Up: Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Nemanja Bjelica, Draymond Green
Expert Pick #1 – Boston Celtics -3.5 @-110
Although they go to this game after two straight defeats, the Celtics are capable of bringing this series to a decider. I think they will win in front of their fans and cover the number, and we should see Game 7 in these NBA Finals. I’ll back Boston ATS as my first pick.
Expert Pick #2 – Over 210 @-110
The previous two encounters stayed under the margin mostly since Boston was not good enough in the shooting. I expect them to improve the game in the offense, and these two sides should produce more than 210 points in total. Give me the Over as the second bet.
Expert Pick #3 – Boston Celtics Over 106.5 @-120
Consequently, the Celtics should score at least 107 pts on Thursday evening since it should bring them closer to a victory. They need to increase their numbers, and they will have a great opportunity to do so in front of their crowd. I’ll go with this one as my third pick at slightly lower odds than the first two.
