Boston Celtics Upset Minded against Golden State Warriors
Can the Boston Celtics pull off the improbable upset over the Golden State Warriors?
Friday night at 7:30 PM Eastern time, the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts will be absolutely rocking. The 23-0 Golden State Warriors are in town for a visit, and there are plenty of believers who think the Boston Celtics can knock off the current NBA kings.
Boston boasts a record of 13-9, good for 7th in the Eastern Conference and they’re only improving. Golden State poses a different challenge however, because not only do the Warriors have incredible depth, they have Stephen Curry.
Curry has been lights out this season, shooting 54% from the field in the last 10 games and averaging 32 points per game. Golden State was able to escape in Indiana after the Pacers cut the Warriors lead to single digits late in the fourth quarter. However, interim coach Luke Walton put his starters back in and they were able to close out the game and keep their squeaky clean record.
With no Marcus Smart for Boston on Friday night, the Celtics are going to be without one of their top defenders. Even without Smart, the Celtics have impressive talent on the defensive side of the ball, which is a key to stop Golden State.
Avery Bradley has been having a stellar season for the Celtics so far, averaging 18 points in the last 10 games and two steals. Bradley is also one of the premier perimeter defenders in the entire NBA. Bradley will most likely have the daunting duty of guarding superstar Steph Curry, and while nobody can expect to shut him down, Bradley’s physical style of defense has as good of a chance as anybody.
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Big man Amir Johnson, who has recently started to perform for the Celtics. He is an athletic defender in the paint who can alter shots. Lastly, one of the fiercest guys on the Celtics is former Marquette man Jae Crowder. Crowder took the challenge of LeBron James in last year’s playoffs during the first round matchup between Boston and Cleveland.
Crowder was not afraid to get into James’ face and let him know that no one on the Celtics was afraid of him, and Boston seems to be approaching this Warriors game in the same fearless attitude.
The Celtics may be the best team in the NBA suited to slow down the Warriors’ incredibly offensive attack. However, it is unlikely they are able to put up enough offense to keep up with even a slowed down Warriors’ attack.
The only player even close to bringing consistent offense to the Celtics is 5’9″ guard Isaiah Thomas. Thomas is this team’s leading scorer with 21 points per game and has been spreading the ball around more, averaging about six assists per contest. In order for Boston to have a chance in this game, Thomas has to bring his A game and be hot from the start, which has been a struggle for him this season.
David Lee will see some minutes against his former team, and will bolster Boston on the offensive end, but due to his poor defensive rating, Lee might not be out there as much as he’d like to be.
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Bottom line: The Celtics have the tools to upset the league’s super team, it’s just a matter of putting it all together. Their defensive prowess has a chance to contain Curry and company offensively, and if Thomas can get hot, anything can happen. If Boston can pull off the upset, everyone around the NBA will start noticing this up and coming team that has a lot to prove.