Golden State Warriors

Jordan Poole connected from just inside midcourt to cap a huge third-quarter run and the Golden State Warriors beat the Boston Celtics 107-88 on Sunday.

Boston entered the night 4-0 in the Warriors’ three-year-old home, the only team to have won there first four games in the arena. Those Bulls and Rockets went on to win the championship, and 31 of the previous 36 teams to open with 2-0 leads ended up celebrating a title. Poole finished with 17 points for the Warriors, who outscored Boston 35-14 in the third quarter to turn a two-point halftime lead into a 23-point edge.

The Golden State Warriors defeated the Boston Celtics to even the NBA Finals at 1-1.

Going down 2-0 with both losses coming at home would have certainly been a gut punch, so the Warriors rightfully approached this game with the appropriate sense of urgency. While each win just counts as one, a dominant effort like this will certainly give the Warriors some additional confidence as they head into what projects to be a hostile environment in Boston. It was mostly Steph Curry for the first half of this game, with both Klay Thompson and Jordan Poole struggling; however, a flurry from Poole to end the third quarter helped give Golden State a comfortable lead entering the final frame.

The Boston Celtics have been utterly embarrassed in Game 2 of the NBA Finals, with the Golden State Warriors claiming a comprehensive 107-88 victory in ...

Jayson Tatum topped the Boston scorers with 28 points, but crucially 21 of those came in a hardfought first half. It was reportedly the third-longest three-pointer in an NBA Finals game since 1998. Our third quarter was great and we got a bit more separation that made the fourth quarter easier tonight.”

After blowing a 15-point lead -- and a brilliant 34-point performance from Stephen Curry -- the Warriors refused to repeat the mistakes they made in Game 1 ...

Content to launch from distance and midrange, the Celtics attempted only six shots directly at the basket, and drew three fouls there. Green, who suggested the Celtics' Game 1 exploits would be impossible to sustain, proved correct. His handle and step-back off the dribble were well-tuned, and he initiated an unusual number of the conventional pick-and-rolls the Warriors generally forgo. Game 2 will not be placed in the Warriors' time capsule beneath one of the 32 private wine cellars at Chase Center. Their patented elegant offense appeared at times ordinary. Unlike their prolific spurt in Game 1, Golden State didn't squander it on Sunday. Coming off a 34-point outing in Game 1, Curry once again showcased his devastating combination of long-range marksmanship and constant motion, tallying 29 points on 9-for-21 shooting from the field, 6-for-7 from the foul stripe and 5-for-12 from behind the 3-point line.

Minute-by-minute report: Steph Curry and Co head to the east coast looking to level the series. Join Hunter Felt for the latest news.

A 15-year NBA veteran making his first finals appearance a day before his 36th birthday, Horford top-scored for the Celtics with 26 points, including a career-high six three-pointers. The Celtics did indeed have to play flawless defense, holding the most potent offense in the Western Conference to a mere 16 points, but Tatum didn’t score a single point from there on out. Both the Celtics and Warriors wore orange shirts before the game with “End Gun Violence” messages. The Celtics have, in a way, done their job in guaranteeing a road split, so the pressure’s all on the Warriors. Smart then adds to the Celtics early lead with a jumper. Nope, I have no real basketball argument to back that statement up other than “vibes” (and the fact that the Celtics have had a problem with, uh, not riding momentum after big wins this postseason). This just feels like a long, chaotic series so why not guess on whatever result ruins as many narratives as possible. Tatum then scores his first points of the game. Payton II misses the first free throw and the second free throw. The Warriors, meanwhile, take a timeout to plan what they’ll do with the ball on their next possession. Tatum hits a three-pointer that the Warriors would love to answer: And Draymond does! Curry misses his first free throw, Golden State leaving a lot of points on the board early, but makes the second. Looney strips Tatum but Curry ends up being the one who misses the first three-pointer.

Golden State has been more reliant on its superstar in the NBA Finals more than it has ever been.

Even in their 2019 Finals loss to Toronto, the Warriors got a strong offensive push from Curry (30.5) and Thompson (26), with Durant missing much of the series. Seven years ago, the rallying cry was Strength in Numbers-with guys like Draymond Green, Harrison Barnes and Andre Iguodala providing enough collective pop to support Curry and Thompson. And of course, it was Iguodala who won MVP—averaging 16.3 points to go with his defense on LeBron James—of that first championship in 2015. They were the Splash Brothers, dazzling everyone with their lethal shooting, burying teams under a hailstorm of threes. At the moment, Curry looks like a solo splasher, an only child. … I guess you compare it to years past, with the depth that we had, with the heavy load of scoring me, KD, Klay had, obviously looks a little different, and the game flows a little different.” “I think it’s different,” Curry said, “just because of the way the team is constructed. He put up 34 points in Game 1, which might have been enough had the Warriors’ defense not collapsed in the fourth quarter. Curry was electric Sunday, scoring 29 points in just 32 minutes of work, earning a rest for the entire fourth quarter. Can Poole recapture the magic of April and early May? Can Thompson— who spent two years recovering from major surgeries before returning in January—regain his pop in this series? “Boston is a hell of a team. A beaming Stephen Curry promptly met him for a high five and a fierce hug. In prior runs, the Warriors were powered by Curry and Thompson’s shooting, then by Curry and Kevin Durant (with a nice dash of Thompson on top). But now?

Thompson is shooting just 26 percent from long range in a series that's now tied 1-1.

It's especially important for Thompson to make shots in order to maximize his value to the Warriors at this point in time, as he has yet to return to form as the dominant defender he once was. Playing alongside the game's best shooter in Curry, opportunities are always going to be there for Thompson, and it's up to him to capitalize. In addition to Thompson simply settling in and finding a rhythm, it's also obviously on coach Kerr to continue to put him in position to succeed. Thompson missed two full seasons thanks to a pair of serious lower-body injuries and he worked relentlessly to get back out on the floor. He also seems to be allowing frustration to creep in, as he could be seen slapping his hands together and shaking his head as the misses started to pile up on Sunday night. To say that Thompson has been cold over the first two games of the Finals would be an understatement.

With two games in the books, we take a look at three NBA Finals bets that could net a payday.

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Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards credits Steve Kerr for some of his growth.

Running, touching the line, shoot. "I’m running, touching the line, shoot. I call my trainer afterwards and was like, 'Hey bro, we’ve got to change.' Ever since then is when I felt like I took that next step."

Draymond Green gave the Warriors a needed "attitude adjustment" that propelled them to a bounce back Game 2 win.

"That was obviously a big shot to get the crowd into it," Curry said. "We put ourselves right back in position to take control of the series," said Green, who finished with 9 points, 7 assists and 5 rebounds. "Steph was breathtaking in that quarter," Kerr said. So we knew we had to keep our foot on the gas pedal and not let up, and we did that." "If I'm not sending a message, who is sending that message?" Green was intent on sending a message, not to the Boston Celtics, but one to his own team.

A fiery star tests some limits in carrying Golden State over Boston in Game 2.

In the second quarter, he fouled the Celtics’ Jaylen Brown on a 3-point attempt before they fell to the court in a tangled heap and appeared to shove each other. And we ultimately knew if we go out and play our game, we put ourselves right back in position to take control of the series.” (The last straw was striking LeBron James in the groin.) Golden State lost that game — Green had to watch it on television from a luxury suite at the baseball stadium next door — and then the next two as the Cleveland Cavaliers stormed back to win their first and only championship. “I think we’re in a great mental space,” Green said. But you feel him in his presence, and the other team feels his presence and his intensity, and that’s contagious for all of us.” “I don’t know what I was supposed to do there,” Brown said. As for that fine line — the one that most players know they should not cross, especially in the postseason — Green used to have more trouble negotiating it, believe it or not. The pros far outweigh the cons, unless you are an opposing player, in which he case he can be one of the most irritating people on the planet. By the end of the night, his body of work — however polarizing his behavior — helped clear the path for Golden State’s 107-88 victory, which tied the finals at a game apiece before Game 3 on Wednesday in Boston. A tenacious defender and immensely skilled passer, he has already helped the team win three titles — and now, amid their renaissance, aspires for more. “I think we talk about how some of that stuff doesn’t always show up in the stat sheet in terms of points, rebounds, assists. How Green treats the line depends on the circumstances, but also on his mood.

Draymond Green became a hot topic among NBA fans for both his defense during Game 2, and some of his antics. There were numerous plays he could have been ...

I don't know what that was about, but that's what Draymond Green does." There were numerous plays he could have been called for a foul but seemed to get away with a bit during the first half. Draymond Green became a hot topic among NBA fans for both his defense during Game 2, and some of his antics.

After splitting the first two games of the series at home, the Warriors make way to Boston on Wednesday for Game 3 of the 2022 NBA Finals.

Jaylen Brown has carried the Celtics in stretches over the first two games, leading Boston’s Game 1 comeback at the start of the fourth quarter and starting off hot with nine of his 17 points in Game 2 in the first two-and-a-half minutes of the first quarter, and Derrick White has also hurt the Dubs with his outside shooting (seven threes over two games). If Game 3 plays out anything like the first two games, keep your eye on the 3-point line. James Wiseman (right knee injury management) is out. In fact, Boston has lost twice in a row just once since Jan. 23. Curry played the passing lanes throughout Game 2 and netted three steals, in addition to holding his own as an on-the-ball defender as noted by Draymond Green. The two-time MVP and three-time champ has averaged 31.5 points though the first two games of the Finals, shooting 45.5 percent from the field and 45.9 percent from 3-point range with 12 total splashes. AST: Tatum (6.1) The Dubs have outscored the Celtics 73-38 in the third period of those two games combined. GSW: GSW: Andre Iguodala is day-to-day. After splitting the first two games of the series at home, the Warriors make way to Boston on Wednesday for Game 3 of the 2022 NBA Finals. Wednesday’s showdown will be the Dubs’ first road game of the championship series, last visiting the TD Garden on Dec. 17 during the regular season. With the win, the Dubs tied the best-of-seven Championship series at 1-1. Dub Nation – due to popular demand, we’re moving our watch parties to inside Chase Center! Come out to Chase Center and cheer on the Dubs with your fellow fans while we broadcast the game in-arena!

Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards explains how Warriors coach Steve Kerr pushed him to be a harder worker.

Edwards was not available at No. 2, but the Wolves were widely reported to be interested in trading down, and the Dubs whiffed on yet another talented guard in LaMelo Ball at No. 3. The Warriors staff then took Edwards out to dinner and gave him the advice that may have changed his professional trajectory. Ever since then, I feel like I took that next step,” Edwards said. Edwards and TNT analyst Kenny Smith went on a YouTube show called “Jake’s Takes” to promote the Adam Sandler vehicle “Hustle,” which both appear in. “I’m doing this drill that they say Steph [Curry] be doing. The show’s host asked Edwards what the “most important failure” of his life was.