For the past two seasons the Golden State Warriors have been the most dominant force in the NBA. After the 2016 season in which they blew a 3-1 series lead, the Warriors added Kevin Durant to an already historically great team. The Warriors have now added the best big man in the NBA in DeMarcus Cousins and will trot out five all stars next season. The Warriors are the favorite once again to win the championship this season,but if one team has the formula to dethrone them it is the Boston Celtics.
The Celtics have improved each season since Brad Stevens took over as head coach in 2013. Not only do they have one of the best coaches and one of the smartest GM's in the NBA, but their team assimilation is phenomenal. With all- stars Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward coming back the Celtics should be better than ever. Irving and Hayward will be joining two of the best young wings in the NBA in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. The Celtics are also solid on the bench even more solid than the Warriors. The Celtics are also one of the best defensive teams in the NBA. They have the personnel to switch on all ball screens and can match up with Curry, Durant, and Thompson to disrupt the Warriors offensive flow.
The Celtics are also the younger of the two teams. Their youth will be beneficial along with the championship pedigree that Kyrie Irving brings to the table. Jayson Tatum look like a star in the making and will be a year older and more mature. He did not back down against the best player in the NBA last season in the playoffs and he will most certainly be up for the challenge if the Celtics were able to meet the Warriors in the NBA finals. With Terry Rozier and Marcus Smart (maybe) coming off the bench along with Marcus Morris and others the drop off will not be as significant. The Celtics second unit is filled with tough defensive players who can also score when they need too. For the record the Warriors bench will still be pretty good with Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala leading the way ,but it surely will not match up to the overall talent that the Celtics have coming off of their bench.
The final piece that will contribute to the Celtics beating the Warriors is the three point shooting. The Celtics like the Warriors have multiple players who can knock down threes and at a high rate. Kyrie, Gordon, Horford, and Tatum are all great three point shooters. The Warriors will not just be able to hoist up a load of threes like they have against other teams in the past. The Celtics are great at stopping you from what you do best. The Warriors at times seemed to be disengaged defensively and get a little too relaxed. The Warriors against the Celtics would most definitely be a fantastic series to watch. With the huge collection of stars and two of the best coaches in the NBA it would almost certainly go to seven games. The Celtics have the pieces and coaching to get it done this year, and if the Celtics play the way most NBA fans are accustomed to seeing they will do what seems to be the unthinkable and beat the Golden State Warriors in this years NBA Finals.
-Evan Brooks (ebrooks_14)
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