Twelve seasons away from the NBA Finals has the Boston Celtics faithful excited about the possibility for the future. But Golden State Warriors won’t be ready to quickly give up its throne as one of the NBA’s best franchises over the past ten years. The Warriors are making their sixth NBA Finals appearance since 2015 and have won three championships.
Steph Curry and Klay Thompson once again lead Golden State, but the Warriors have plenty of new supporting characters to help out. Boston is led by Jayson Tatum, who has developed into one of the league’s top young players.
How will this all shake out for Game 1? Anyone who knows how to bet on NBA knows it will be an interesting matchup.
Last game records
The Celtics beat Miami 100-96 on May 29 in Miami. Boston won the series 4-3. Golden State beat Dallas 120-110 on May 26 in San Francisco. The Warriors won the series 4-1.
Matchup Information
Celtics at Warriors Betting Analysis
Boston Analysis
The Celtics have been through the ringer to reach the NBA Finals. Betting stats NBA show Boston was able to knock out defending champion Milwaukee and top seed Miami in seven games to win the Eastern Conference. Boston did so by playing suffocating defense.
The Celtics held the Heat below 100 points three times in the Eastern Conference finals, including two games where Miami scored fewer than 90 points. Center Al Horford has been one of the key Boston contributors on both ends of the court, leading the team by grabbing 9.6 rebounds per game and also scoring 11.9 points per contest.
Tatum and shooting guard Jaylen Brown have done most of the heavy lifting on offense for the Celtics. Leading the way is Tatum, who averages 27.0 points per game.
Brown isn’t too far behind at 22.9 per contest. Boston is shooting 36.2 percent from the 3-point line in the playoffs.
Warriors Analysis
Curry is under some pressure in these finals to put up the numbers to earn NBA Finals MVP to cement his legacy, if you believe he really needs that. In his career, Curry has averaged 26.5 points, 6.2 assists, and 5.7 rebounds in NBA Finals games. From the 3-point line, Curry has made 42 percent of his attempts in the finals.
Golden State should be well-rested after dispatching Dallas in five games to reach the finals. In addition to Curry, the Warriors have received consistent scoring from Klay Thompson (19.8 points per game), Jordan Poole (18.4), and Andrew Wiggins (15.8), who have all averaged in double figures. Wiggins has also come up big on the glass, grabbing 7.0 rebounds per game.
Golden State will need to protect the ball against Boston. The Warriors have had a lot of turnover issues during the postseason, giving the ball away 14.0 times per game.
Updates
Warriors forward Andre Iguodala will miss Game 1 of the NBA Finals with a neck injury. Otto Porter is questionable with a foot injury. Gary Payton II will be out with an elbow injury. For the Celtics, center Robert Williams III is listed as questionable.
- Boston is 56-42-2 against the spread.
- Golden State is 50-44-4 against the spread.
- The over is 48-50-2 in the Celtics’ games.
- The over is 45-41-2 in the Warriors’ games.
- Golden State is 5-1 against the spread in its last six games.
Celtics at Warriors Betting Preview
NBA betting odds show Golden State is a -167 favorite on the moneyline. The Celtics are +140 on the moneyline. The Warriors are -3.5 favorites.
Anyone looking to make different kinds of NBA picks can bet on the over/under is set at 212 points.
Celtics at Warriors Betting Prediction
The Celtics’ defense is legitimate and will provide Golden State with a lot of different issues. The Warriors have also been generous at giving the ball away. However, playing in front of an energized home court should help Golden State.
The Warriors are also a much better offensive team than the Celtics. While Boston’s defense will cause Golden State headaches for much of this series, it’s easy to see the Warriors coming out and picking up a win in Game 1.
For many of the Boston players, this will be their first time on the big stage, while many of the Warriors players know the drill of playing in the finals. Experience will carry the day in Game 1.
This won’t be comfortable, but the Warriors should do enough to cover the spread.
How to bet on Celtics at Warriors
Bet Golden State -3.5.
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