Warriors

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Curry will probably only sit four minutes to start the second quarter, and if the game is anywhere close, Curry going the whole second half shouldn't be off the table. He's right that it's about the Warriors "understanding how the series develops." "It's the latter," Curry said. There's not a doubt in the world that Curry wants to be on the court more. Over that stretch the Warriors actually increased their lead from four to six, and in theory, if they can merely break even in the non-Curry minutes it's a win. But every non-Curry minute isn't a threat to break the dam.

Both the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors wore shirts urging for the end of gun violence ahead of Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night.

"HAS TO BE!!" ... Wearing this [represents] that change needs to be made, and we're all on the same page as far as that." "There simply has to be change!" "There are things we can do to limit gun violence that would not violate people's second amendment rights but would save people's lives," Warriors head coach Steve Kerr told reporters. Various activism organizations are featured on the back of the shirts. The Warriors players and staff will be warming up in “End Gun Violence” shirts today.

Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Finals lived up to the hype. The Warriors entered the fourth quarter with a 12-point lead, but the Celtics outscored them 40-16 in ...

— — — — — — — — Game 2 of the NBA Finals will tip off around 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 5. Jaylen Brown is off to a scorching start with nine points on 3-for-4 shooting from the field and 2-for-2 from 3. 8:24 p.m. — Gary Payton II checks in for the Warriors with 5:30 remaining in the period. 8:18 p.m. — Celtics have a 16-11 lead going into the game's first timeout.

Steve Kerr said the idea behind the shirts is to make people aware of how to contribute to gun safety and gun violence prevention groups.

"We play a game that if you win, you're elated and you feel great about it," Udoka said on Sunday. "You lose, you're devastated for the moment but it's not life and death, you still go on. "It continues to happen. And so people got to vote, and if you feel strongly about saving lives and possibly even someone in your own family, get out and vote. "There are things we can do that would not violate people's Second Amendment rights, but would save lives. Warriors coach Steve Kerr and Celtics coach Ime Udoka both wore the shirts to their pregame news conferences on Sunday night. And there are ways to limit it.

Boston stole Game 1 on the road after outscoring Golden State 40-16 in the fourth quarter.

Boston became the first team in NBA Finals history to win by double digits after trailing by double digits entering the fourth quarter. Curry finished with a game-high seven 3, including six in a red-hot opening quarter. Down 14 points entering the fourth quarter, Boston outscored Golden State 40-16 for a stunning 120-108 comeback.

Green was 2 of 12 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, and the player he was assigned to defend scored 26 points on 12 attempts, and he dishes his share of smoke on his ...

He has to defend well, he has to be aggressive on offense, he has to rebound, he has to push the tempo and run point in the half court. The pattern is normally that he bounces back and relishes the opportunity to give it back to his critics. The Celtics made 9 of 16 on attempts when Green was defending — unusually high for Green, who entered the NBA Finals holding opponents to 38.3 percent from the field, per NBA Stats. And while his aggressiveness on offense was good, he must convert at a higher rate for it to have the desired impact. Against these Celtics, he’s going to have to play some of the best chess of his life. One of the areas Green thrives is in transition. Then in Game 2, Green had 17 points of 6 of 12 from the field to go with 10 rebounds and nine assists as the Warriors stole home-court advantage. I know he takes all that stuff personally in terms of his standard and what he knows he can do out there on the floor. Green was 2 of 12 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, and the player he was assigned to defend scored 26 points on 12 attempts, and he dishes his share of smoke on his podcast. From his energy and effort to his aggressiveness and decisiveness, it all reverberates with the Warriors. This is why when he’s not good, it’s a lot to overcome. In the 2015 NBA Finals against Cleveland, Green’s first on the big stage, he struggled the first three games. Because when Green is good, it is felt in multiple areas of the game. He was forged in the fires of banter.

Leading a squad of Finals first-timers against a seasoned title team, the Celtics coach draws from his own championship experience heading into Sunday's ...

It's one thing to make a ton of 3s -- the Celtics hit seven in a row to start the fourth -- and another to start expecting it. By disrupting the cadence of the game, the man whose first name means "patience" did his part to keep the floor from becoming scattered and allowing the Warriors back into it. Still, it's counterintuitive to stop the flow of a massive run -- twice! "He carries that sense of toughness with him and does instill that into the group every day." Udoka's experience -- to a degree -- negates the inexperience of his players. The question was asked, in just about every form possible, and the Celtics players responded by shrugging and repeating some versions of "basketball is basketball."

Only the main Warriors core of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala are still around from that series, but they're emphasizing that it ...

Can Green, Thompson and/or Poole step up after their lackluster efforts in Game 1? Golden State could also use some of the defensive tenacity that Gary Payton II brings, though he was not used in Game 1 as he still recovers from his elbow fracture. But even if not panicking, there is undoubtedly a sense of urgency and desperation for the Warriors. While Curry and Andrew Wiggins were both really solid on Thursday, Thompson and Green didn’t play great.

With the 2021-22 NBA regular season now in the books, the basketball betting market is hotter than ever. CBS Sports will be providing daily picks for the ...

The Celtics tried to turned Jayson Tatum into a passer in Game 1. Boston wasn't the only team to shoot above its means in Game 1. Fortunately, the Celtics got three days of rest after dispatching the Heat, and that seems to have done Williams well. The Celtics made 13 of their 23 wide-open looks from deep in Game 1. In a somewhat more typical Game 2, a desperate Warriors team playing at home has the advantage. CBS Sports will be providing daily picks for the duration of the postseason.

The Celtics stole Game 1 of the Finals with a shocking fourth-quarter scoring barrage. But the Warriors vow to play a more complete Game 2.

But he has been an important role player for the Celtics — and he was crucial to their fourth-quarter surge that buried the Warriors in Game 1. He’s been dared to shoot by the Heat and then the Celtics and accepted the challenge. Jeff Van Gundy will rejoin the ABC broadcast team Sunday for Game 2 of the NBA Finals after testing positive for COVID and missing Game 1, an ESPN spokesperson said. White has been a key player for the Celtics in their run to the Finals. He’s filled in as a starter for Marcus Smart when Smart missed games in the second and third rounds. Porter also returned from injury in Game 1 after missing the last two games of the Western Conference finals against Dallas. He had 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting in 24 minutes. Jayson Tatum got off to a better start in Game 2, scoring 13 points in the first quarter. White not only contributed on offense with his playmaking and shotmaking abilities, but his defense shined so much so that Boston's Defensive Player the Year, Marcus Smart, didn't have to enter the fourth quarter until the 3:47 mark. “We feel very strongly as a league that it's time for people to take notice and to take part in what should be a nationwide effort to limit the gun violence that's out there,” Kerr said. He scored nine points on 2-for-7 shooting from the field and 1-for-5 from three, down from his 18.4-point average this postseason. Jayson Tatum exploded for 21 first-half points on 7-for-16 shooting from the field and 5-for-7 on 3s. The Warriors head into halftime with a 52-50 lead over the Celtics. Steph Curry leads Golden State with 15 points on 5-for-12 shooting from the field and 2-for-6 from 3-point range. How the Warriors respond could define the rest of the series.

Andre Iguodala has been ruled out for Game 2 of the NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics on Sunday night at the Chase Center.

- SHOULD THE BUCKS MAKE A TRADE? The Milwaukee Bucks lost Game 7 to the Boston Celtics, which officially ended their 2021-22 NBA season in the second-round. Now, they are in desperate need of a win to avoid falling into a dreaded 0-2 hole before going on the road to Boston to play Games 3 and 4. They blew a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter, and lost the final period by a score of 40-16.

It's a Poole Party at Chase Center to end the third quarter after this miraculous shot.

Golden State infamously blew that lead, being outscored 40-16 in the final frame of that game. With nine points through three quarters, Poole leads the Golden State bench in scoring. The pair of triples also gave the Warriors a 23-point lead heading into the fourth quarter — nearly three times as large as their lead heading into the fourth in Game 1.

The Boston Celtics and the Golden State Warriors will play Game 2 of the 2022 NBA Finals in San Francisco on Sunday. Here's how to watch, with gametime and ...

- The Celtics and Warriors have played a total of 24 playoff games and four playoff series all-time, winning all four meetings. They are just the fourth NBA team and twelfth franchise amongst the four major sports (NBA, NHL, NFL, MLB) to play in the championship series/game six times in an eight-year span, according toElias Sports Bureau. Boston made their first seven threes in the fourth quarter. The Warriors’ offense went ice cold in the final quarter of play, as they shot just 7-17 from the floor. - 2022 NBA Finals: What Celtics Game 1 Victory Against Golden State Means For Rest Of Series: The Boston Celtics defeated the Golden State Warriors 120-108 in Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Finals on Thursday, giving them a massive early edge in this series.CLICK HERE. If there is one thing we learned from this game, it is that we actually have the best two teams in the league playing one another with a title on the line! After leading by 12 points entering the fourth quarter, the Warriors were outscored 40-16 by the Celtics in the final quarter of play, resulting in a massive come from behind victory for Boston in Game 1 of this NBA Finals series. - Should Warriors Hit "Panic Button" After Game 1 Loss In NBA Finals?: Losing 120-108 to the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Finals, the Golden State Warriors now find their backs up against the wall heading into Game 2 on their home floor.CLICK HERE. Instead, they became "The Monstars" from Space Jam, as Boston could not miss whatsoever. - The Golden State Warriors have four consecutive wins in Game 2 of the NBA Finals and since 2015, they have a 4-1 record in the second game of the Finals. - The Celtics defensive rating of 105.7 in the 2022 NBA playoffs ranks second in the league and their 101.4 points allowed per game in the postseason ranks third. - The Warriors finished the regular season ranking first in defensive rating and third in points allowed per game (105.5), while the Celtics finished the regular season ranking second in defensive rating and first in opponent’s points per game (104.5).

Within seconds of Game 2 tipping off, Golden State made it clear that it planned to bring maximum urgency: Draymond Green wrestled Al Horford to the floor for a ...

The two-time MVP made five three-pointers, helping to overcome a poor shooting night from Thompson, who finished 4 for 19 from the field (and 1 for 8 from three-point range). Curry’s consistent probing and Poole’s long-range three helped Golden State outscore Boston 35-14 in the pivotal third quarter. The Celtics shot 9 for 34 on two-pointers in the first three quarters, finding it difficult to finish in traffic and draw whistles. Kerr made several tweaks to his rotation in response to the Game 1 defeat, reinserting backup guard Gary Payton II to help fill the gaps for forward Andre Iguodala, who sat out with a swollen knee. For Boston, the blowout was a continuation of its tendency to let up after victories and a reminder that it takes more than three-point shooting to win a title. It was obviously ramped up tonight, and it needed to be given what Boston did in Game 1. The shot swished through as the buzzer sounded, landing like a shock to Golden State’s troubled system and drawing a bear hug from Curry. The Warriors didn’t need to sweat another blown lead when a 45-footer was splashing in.

What the Golden State Warriors did against the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night was the definition of "response.

The Warriors scored 33 points off of turnovers in Game 2, 18 more than the Celtics. They won the game by 19 points. Klay Thompson shot 4-of-19 from the field in Game 2. Their championship hopes rely on the best version of him showing up more often than the worst, but on a night-to-night basis, the Warriors don't seem to know which one they're going to get. Andrew Wiggins has had a slow start to the Finals. Right now, Curry is generating almost everything on offense for Golden State. Thompson isn't exactly a high-usage ball-handler, but the offense runs much more smoothly when the Warriors can at least rely on him to make open shots and generate some of his own looks inside of the arc. Not coincidentally, the Celtics committed 18 turnovers in Game 2, five more than they did in Game 1. Thompson shot below 40 percent from the field in 15 of his 32 regular-season games. The problem with extended Payton minutes is that Boston has little interest in guarding him on the perimeter. The moment he decided to try to play drop-coverage against Stephen Curry should have been the moment Ime Udoka decided to banish him for the rest of the series. The Celtics managed to get outscored by 12 points in the seven competitive minutes he played in this game. The game was extremely close through the first 24 minutes, but in the third quarter, the Warriors kicked it up a notch and gained some serious separation. Horford and Smart combined for 44 points in Game 1. Jayson Tatum paced the Celtics with 28 points and six rebounds, but his production wasn't enough as only two other Celtics players scored in double figures.

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.

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.

Steph Curry scored 29 points as the Warriors exploded in the second half to beat the Celtics 107-88 and even the series at one game.

Poole then nailed a corner 3-pointer and swished a half-court heave at the buzzer. Poole immediately hit Looney with a perfect bounce pass after driving to the hole, and the center converted for two points. Thompson came out strong to open the third quarter, but it looked like Poole would sit the entire quarter and perhaps his night was over. He ran his usual marathon around the court, and with Jordan Poole struggling, Steve Kerr needed as many minutes as possible from Curry. The three-time champion totaled 32 minutes in three quarters. Whenever the Warriors needed a big shot from deep, whether it was to ignite the crowd or slow down the Celtics, he was there. Two nights after scoring 38 points in the third quarter of Game 1, the Warriors this time scored 35.

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.

Steph Curry scored 14 points in the third quarter, helping the Warriors pull away from the Celtics in Game 2.

"It's pretty dramatic, the difference in Steph's strength and physicality and his body now from eight years ago when I first got here. "Steph was breathtaking in that quarter, not just the shot-making but the defensive effort," Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters after the game. He also had two rebounds, one steal and was a plus-21 in those 12 minutes of action.

Steph Curry & Co. won Game 2 behind another third-quarter run. The Finals now shift to Boston tied 1-1.

“It’s something we have to fix,” admitted Horford. They will need a better defense against the Warriors’ three-point shooters, including Jordan Poole (17 points) and Andrew Wiggins (11) who contributed to Golden State’s 40% shooting from beyond the arc. Just being aggressive and playing the Warriors basketball we know how to play.” “Gave away a lot of opportunities,” Udoka said. “Steph was breathtaking in that quarter,” Steve Kerr said. The Boston defense that blanketed him over the final three quarters of Game 1 had no answer for him in Game 2. In Game 1, Curry played his best in the first quarter. The 39–17 drubbing Miami clubbed Boston with in Game 1 of the conference finals. In Game 2, it was the third. Curry scored 14 points in the quarter. In Game 1 of the Finals, Golden State hit the Celtics with a 38–24 third quarter. This time, though, Boston couldn’t rally, allowing Golden State to even the series with a 107–88 win. There was the 34–17 blitz Milwaukee put on them in Game 3 of the conference semifinals.

A desperate Warriors team demolished the Celtics in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday, sending the series back to Boston tied 1-1.

“We had 11 turnovers for 18 points in the first half.” To get a technical.” The Warriors have been a great third-quarter team all season, but the Celtics can’t keep allowing them to take control of the game in that period. They need to put some pressure on the Warriors in the paint in Game 3 to get some of those looks back. A negative: Sometimes all a young player needs is to see the ball go in a couple of times. When they returned, the entire tenor of the game had changed. A championship team needs to be able to overcome those frustrations, whether or not they are legitimate. “In a demonstrative way. 1. The biggest takeaway for the Celtics: They have to find a way to generate points around the basket. Their shot selection suffered for the rest of the half, and they never appeared comfortable after that stretch. They generated a lot of open 3s in Game 1. “They switched a few more things,” Celtics coach Ime Udoka said.

The Warriors broke open what was a two-point game at the half with a third quarter blitz and evened the 2022 NBA Finals on Sunday night with a 107-88 win at ...

Tatum - 6 Tatum - 3 Wiggins - 6 Curry - 6 Looney - 12 Curry - 4

Golden State se llevó el segundo de la serie ante Boston, y el mexicano ayudó a poner punto final a la victoria en el Chase Center con un par de asistencias ...

A diferencia del partido de este domingo, en aquella primera aparición, el partido ya estaba entregado. También, contribuyó con ocho rebotes, una asistencia, un bloqueo y dos pérdidas de balón en 28 minutos de partido. Toscano-Anderson ingresó estando arriba Golden State por 102-78, con la misión de gestionar la ventaja en la recta final, misión que los Warriors no lograron completar en el primer partido de la serie, cuando cayeron por 120-108 ante los Celtics.

The second game of the NBA Finals series between the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics brought out another round of celebrities attending Chase ...

ABC's cameras also caught Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive, Michigan State men’s basketball head coach Tom Izzo — there to watch Michigan State product Draymond Green among others — and 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan. 49ers receiver Deebo Samuel also made his latest appearance at a Warriors game, posting on his Instagram story that he was seated courtside. Green oddly enough wore a gray and green sweatsuit during his “Star-Spangled Banner” performance. Another notable name who in attendance for Game 2 was Ringer CEO and podcaster Bill Simmons, whose most prominent appearance at the arena came up after officials stopped a fast break to review whether Warriors guard Jordan Poole committed a technical foul on Celtics guard Derrick White — it was deemed he didn't so the stop was ostensibly made for no reason.

What the Golden State Warriors did against the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night was the definition of "response.

The Warriors scored 33 points off of turnovers in Game 2, 18 more than the Celtics. They won the game by 19 points. Klay Thompson shot 4-of-19 from the field in Game 2. Their championship hopes rely on the best version of him showing up more often than the worst, but on a night-to-night basis, the Warriors don't seem to know which one they're going to get. Andrew Wiggins has had a slow start to the Finals. Right now, Curry is generating almost everything on offense for Golden State. Thompson isn't exactly a high-usage ball-handler, but the offense runs much more smoothly when the Warriors can at least rely on him to make open shots and generate some of his own looks inside of the arc. Not coincidentally, the Celtics committed 18 turnovers in Game 2, five more than they did in Game 1. Thompson shot below 40 percent from the field in 15 of his 32 regular-season games. The problem with extended Payton minutes is that Boston has little interest in guarding him on the perimeter. The moment he decided to try to play drop-coverage against Stephen Curry should have been the moment Ime Udoka decided to banish him for the rest of the series. The Celtics managed to get outscored by 12 points in the seven competitive minutes he played in this game. The game was extremely close through the first 24 minutes, but in the third quarter, the Warriors kicked it up a notch and gained some serious separation. Horford and Smart combined for 44 points in Game 1. Jayson Tatum paced the Celtics with 28 points and six rebounds, but his production wasn't enough as only two other Celtics players scored in double figures.

Golden State Warriors: Start calling Steph Curry 'Two-Way Steph.' And if his defensive play continues to shine against the Celtics, you might be able to ...

He has three titles, two MVPs, and will have a bust in the Hall of Fame and at least one statue outside of Chase Center — the building his great play built. But there was Curry — he had read the play to perfection and stole the pass. Because they are built to impact the game on both sides of the floor. Celtics backup point guard Payton Pritchard had the ball and Curry as his only defender in the corner with the reset shot clock winding down from 14 seconds. Only Curry didn’t bounce out of the way. He could sense the game slipping away. No, the bulk of credit needs to go to Draymond Green, who came out from the opening tip with a score to settle with himself after a terrible Game 1. If not for his lackluster defensive reputation — one he can’t seem to shake — this wouldn’t be anything to mention. The Dubs locked down on defense and turned those stops into transition offense opportunities. They’d be lucky to sniff the Finals at all. A championship is on the line, after all — who cares about style points? The competition is ruthless.

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. There were some that ...

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.

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.

Jordan Poole and Draymond Green avoided technical fouls in the first half against the Celtics.

They had to be separated and the officials again used replay to review what happened. In the moment, Poole was given a technical foul, but upon review, the referees rescinded the penalty. Towards the end of the first half, Green committed a personal foul on Celtics star Jaylen Brown and the two players got tangled up.

The NBA Finals are now tied, after the Warriors turned a close game into a rout with a third-quarter masterpiece. Stephen Curry scored 29 points, Jordan Poole ...

That’s the most in a single playoff year ever, topping the 90 such quarters in the 2017 playoffs. Jordan made 13 consecutive shots in that game, the last of those the iconic change-hands-in-mid-air layup in the fourth quarter. But the knee swelled up Saturday and he sat for the 13th time in the Warriors’ last 14 games. Celtics: The Celtics fell to 8-3 on the road in these playoffs. They remain tied for the second-most road wins in a single postseason; the record is nine, set by Houston in 1995. 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. Boston entered the night 4-0 in the Warriors’ 3-year-old home, the only team to have won its first four games in the arena. Boston was 4 for 15 in the quarter, got outscored 21-6 on 3s and let the Warriors turn five turnovers into 11 points. 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. Stephen Curry scored 29 points, Jordan Poole connected from just inside of midcourt to cap the pivotal period and the Warriors beat the Boston Celtics 107-88 on Sunday night in Game 2. The Warriors didn’t wait that long in Game 2, going on a 43-14 burst from late in the first half until early in the fourth quarter to turn a tie game into an absolute runaway. Just our level of force and physicality was ramped up quite a bit, and it had to be."

Steph Curry shoots against the Boston Celtics during a red-hot third quarter for the Warriors in Game 2. Ezra Shaw/Getty Images. CNN ...

Both offensively and defensively, the team struggled in the second half, with turnovers becoming a serious issue. "Steph was breathtaking in that third quarter," Kerr told the media post-game. And it is pretty dramatic, the difference in Steph's strength and physicality between now and when I first got here eight years ago.

What the Golden State Warriors did against the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night was the definition of "response.

The Warriors scored 33 points off of turnovers in Game 2, 18 more than the Celtics. They won the game by 19 points. Klay Thompson shot 4-of-19 from the field in Game 2. Their championship hopes rely on the best version of him showing up more often than the worst, but on a night-to-night basis, the Warriors don't seem to know which one they're going to get. Andrew Wiggins has had a slow start to the Finals. Right now, Curry is generating almost everything on offense for Golden State. Thompson isn't exactly a high-usage ball-handler, but the offense runs much more smoothly when the Warriors can at least rely on him to make open shots and generate some of his own looks inside of the arc. Not coincidentally, the Celtics committed 18 turnovers in Game 2, five more than they did in Game 1. Thompson shot below 40 percent from the field in 15 of his 32 regular-season games. The problem with extended Payton minutes is that Boston has little interest in guarding him on the perimeter. The moment he decided to try to play drop-coverage against Stephen Curry should have been the moment Ime Udoka decided to banish him for the rest of the series. The Celtics managed to get outscored by 12 points in the seven competitive minutes he played in this game. The game was extremely close through the first 24 minutes, but in the third quarter, the Warriors kicked it up a notch and gained some serious separation. Horford and Smart combined for 44 points in Game 1. Jayson Tatum paced the Celtics with 28 points and six rebounds, but his production wasn't enough as only two other Celtics players scored in double figures.

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.

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?

The Golden State Warriors have consistently maintained there's no secret sauce to their third quarter excellence. “I honestly have no idea,” Stephen Curry ...

The Warriors shifting to more Curry ball screens also helped. Golden State made a conscious choice to let Tatum face more single-coverage, after he shot 3-of-17 in Game 1, but had 13 assists as his teammates carried Boston to a win. Golden State finished second in the NBA in third quarter net rating this season by outscoring their opponents by +10.5 points per 100 possessions in the period. Kerr says there wasn’t a lot of strategic changes made at halftime. The Warriors appeared to make it a point get Klay Thompson going in the third after he went 1-for-8 in the first half. In Game 2, Golden State held the Celtics to 4-of-17 shooting in the third with four turnovers. The Warriors have been ridiculously good in the third quarter for years now, so all of this should be familiar. The Warriors’ third quarter explosion in Game 2 looked a lot like the third quarter explosions they’ve enjoyed since their first championship run back in 2015. Curry is so often seen flying around around off-ball screens until a teammate hits him for an open shot in the Warriors’ offense, but in the third Kerr put the ball in the hands of his best player and let him cook. Golden State once again did their damage in the third quarter, this time turning that two-point halftime lead into a 23-point advantage by the time the final period started. The Warriors now risked going down 0-2 on their home floor to begin the NBA Finals against the Celtics if they couldn’t deliver in the second half. The Golden State Warriors have consistently maintained there’s no secret sauce to their third quarter excellence.

If there's one thing we've learned over the first two games of the NBA Finals, it's that both teams are capable of going on runs to completely bury their ...

“Alas, a calculator cannot account for one other element of the equation: The possibility of a players’ strike looms, as threatening to the season as a pin pressed to a balloon. Though the strike did halt the season on Aug. 11, O’Neill played his way out of the race for .400 long before that. - Colorado: Jay Howell. He pitched for 15 years as a relief pitcher in the majors (1980 to ’94) with seven teams. With so many challenges to the game’s hallmarks, wouldn’t it be wonderful if just one of them was successful? Orioles closer Lee Smith was on pace to break the record for saves. The Blue Jays’ Joe Carter was racking up RBIs at a rate that would challenge Hack Wilson’s single-season record of 190. - Wisconsin: Harvey Kuenn. He played 15 seasons with the Tigers, Giants, Cubs, Phillies and Cleveland (1952 to ’66), earning eight All-Star selections and the ’53 Rookie of the Year. Kuenn played shortstop early in his career and outfield later. Golden State outscored Boston 35–14 in the third quarter of Game 2 en route to a 107–88 win that evened the series at a game apiece. Rohan Nadkarni notes that there was a huge disparity in the number of catch-and-shoot threes Boston got last night, compared to in Game 1. A Sports Illustrated article from October of that year laid out the challenges facing the school’s “once proud athletic program.” Syracuse finished third in the 1961 College World Series, but the program was discontinued after the ’72 season. Starting the second half on the right foot will be an emphasis for the Celtics in Game 3 at home, Mannix writes: