Why 2022 Finals rematch vs. Celtics comes at right time for Warriors

Programming Note: Watch "Warriors Now" with Bonta Hill and Dalton Johnson (live from Boston) at 4 p.m. PT today, streaming live on the NBC Sports app. Watch the show later on YouTube and Facebook.

BOSTON – My jaw dropped, shaking my head and mouthing “Oh my god.” Mainly at the strength of my wife birthing our daughter a mere 24 hours earlier, gazing at both their beauties. Admittedly, the TV was muted in the background and a small portion of my reaction was from Steph Curry again putting the Boston Celtics to sleep in a 132-126 overtime win, jabbing a sword through the hearts of the same team he had ravaged in the 2022 NBA Finals.

That game was pure entertainment, an early present for all six days before Christmas. Between the fourth quarter and overtime, the Warriors outscored the Celtics by 17 points, 46-29. Curry went nuclear, scoring 20 points in the final two periods. In 17 minutes, the ‘Night Night’ creator himself made seven of his 11 shot attempts, connecting on four of his five 3-pointers to make Chase Center erupt and inject life into a team that badly needed a pulse. 

Though that December night wasn’t the first or second time Curry and the Warriors had played the Celtics since he collected his fourth championship ring, it was one of Golden State’s most memorable wins since winning the title. And finally on Wednesday night at TD Garden a rematch of the 2022 Finals feels like it’s in store for the resurgent Warriors and the reigning champion Celtics. 

The Warriors were 13-13 when they first faced the Celtics in the 2022-23 season, and 22-22 the second time – average at best. They were 12-14 in their first meeting last season in that epic Curry experience, and 32-27 when they were wallopped by 52 points in their most recent meeting last season. 

So much has changed since, from legends leaving the Warriors to the Celtics hanging a banner for the first time since Kevin Garnett let the whole world know that anything is possible. But on Nov. 6, with both teams getting a rest day after wins, the Celtics (7-1) and Warriors (6-1) are on top of the basketball world ready for their biggest test yet this season. 

“It’s about us and coming out and establishing an identity of the team that we want to be for 82 games, and then the playoffs,” Draymond Green said Monday night after the Warriors’ 13-point win over the Washington Wizards. 

Green wasn’t even available for the Warriors’ first game against the Celtics a year ago. He was suspended for his actions in putting Rudy Gobert in a sleeper hold like the Hulk with Sydney Fife. Following a year to forget for Green, he’s as locked in as ever, making more than half his threes as his lights-out defense makes top scorers want to take a night off. 

From training camp in Hawaii through the Warriors’ undefeated 6-0 preseason and their 6-1 start to the regular season, they’ve told us who they want to be. They’ve also stuck to their word, with their actions matching their outward goals. 

Steve Kerr wanted to re-establish a defense-first mentality again. Entering Tuesday, the Warriors rank second in defensive rating (102.1) and the Celtics are fourth (107.7). Behind the ferociousness of new assistant coach Jerry Stackhouse, the Warriors also are fourth in steals per game (9.7), fourth in blocks per game (6.4), seconds in deflections per game (21.9) and fifth in loose balls recovered per game (5.6).

They’re a pack of piranhas circling to devour their prey. 

Offensively, the Warriors wanted to get out and run, convert threes and better take care of the ball. So far, they’re averaging the fourth-most miles per game (19.2) and cashing in from deep. The Celtics far and away have made the most threes in the NBA at 152, and the Warriors are tied for third with 115. But the Warriors have shot the ball beyond the arc at a higher clip, ranking fourth in 3-point percentage (39.1 percent), which is slightly higher than the eighth-ranked Celtics (37.3 percent). 

Turnovers have been a back-breaker for the Warriors in the past. The problem has been cleaned exponentially with the Warriors ranking ninth in fewest turnovers per game (13.9), but the Celtics are third (11.8).

Sure, the Warriors and Celtics technically aren’t the two best teams in the NBA currently. For now, the honor belongs to the Cleveland Cavaliers (8-0) and Oklahoma City Thunder (7-0) – Golden State’s next two opponents to finish a five-game road trip. 

Until they’re knocked from the mountain, the Celtics are supreme. They’ve earned the right to look down at everybody else, just like the Warriors could during their dynastic decade and just like they could the first time these two teams played each other two seasons ago.

“We beat them in the NBA Finals a few years ago, and then they just won one,” Green said. “So they want to dish everything back at us about them just winning one. 

“It’s always a hostile environment. I don’t expect anything different. It’ll be a tough environment against a very good team, a great team.”

The Warriors have embraced being the hunters after years of being the hunted, reminding everyone of what they still can be. Defense, the one-of-one abilities of Curry and Green and a roster built for Kerr’s preferences led them to their latest championship. After two drama-filled down years, all those factors are back, along with a gust of fresh air that radiates throughout the locker room. 

Finally, it feels like West Coast basketball and East Coast basketball can gather around their screens to enjoy the real rematch of the 2022 Finals.

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