2022 NBA Finals Preview: Matchup and Legacy Talk

 

2022 NBA Finals Preview: Matchup and Legacy Talk

By: Carson Hull

After a somewhat lackluster postseason with many blowouts, the NBA Finals presents us basketball fans with what hopefully will, and should be, an amazing matchup between the Boston Celtics and the Golden State Warriors. Despite clear advantages between the two teams, they both match up very well with one another. The Celtics are the only team in the Steve Kerr era to have a winning record against them. Here are the advantages and disadvantages each team has in this matchup, ending with legacy talk and what a championship would mean for each team.

The Warriors offense is a different style, and beast, than anything the Celtics have had to face leading up to the Finals. The Nets, Bucks, and Heat rely much more on isolation than the Warriors do. With the Celtics coming off of two extremely physical seven game series with not much time to rest in the meantime, the physical strain of constantly having to be on point in rotations and coverages might be too much to handle physically after all they have gone through leading up until this point. The Warriors offense is more favorable than the Celtics in crunch time as well, with better execution and less isolation. Boston can become stagnant at times late, and if Tatum or Brown are not executing in isolation, they could lose leads late, and quickly, something Boston has been susceptible to all season. 

Then there is the experience. Boston is a very well experienced post season team, with their core of Tatum, Brown, Smart, and Horford having tons of big games together under their belt. Even Rob Williams III, Grant Williams, and Derrick White have their fair share of postseason experience. However, not a single player on the Celtics has any Finals experience, which is a completely different beast. The Warriors, on the other hand, do not have many rivals historically when it comes to postseason, and Finals experience, with this being their 6th NBA Finals in 8 years. 

Lastly, I love that the Warriors have home court advantage and have been relatively healthy up until this point. It is the Finals. No one is 100% healthy. However, besides Gary Payton II, Andre Iguodala, and Otto Porter Jr., the Warriors have not had injuries to any of their main rotation players(knock on wood). All three of the players mentioned are all questionable to return for Game 1 anyways, and we will most likely see at least one of them for a majority of this series. For the Celtics, Smart and Williams III have been battling injuries all playoffs long, and Boston cannot afford one of them, or God forbid both of them, to be compromised. The home court advantage is also huge, as both teams boast a very impressive home court atmosphere. Not having to play a potential pivotal Game 5 or Game 7 on the road in one of the toughest spots, Boston, is huge for the Warriors. 

Where the Warriors might get in trouble is their lack of size. The Warriors are small, but play big. The Celtics are big, and play big. To win the series, the Celtics have to not just win the rebounding advantage, but DOMINATE. They cannot give up many, if any offensive rebounds and they must use their size to secure every possible rebound. If healthy, Williams III athleticism could be a nightmare for Looney who, despite postseason greatness so far, just would not have the athleticism to keep up with the verticality of Williams III. Horford could also be a huge mismatch when he does not find Draymond on him as he usually plays a more free roaming style of defense. Where I truly fear the Warriors lack of size might haunt us is with Tatum and Brown vs Steph, Klay, and Poole. We only have one Andrew Wiggins, who will certainly do his best at making it as tough as possible for most likely Tatum, but Tatum and Brown love hunting mismatches, and those will come with Steph, Klay and Poole. I love the Splash Brothers(throwing Poole in this) but their defense really scares me as Tatum and Brown are more than capable of attacking all three of them on switches and abusing their lack of size and lateral quickness on the defensive end. 

Where the Warriors do have some guards to exploit the defense, the Celtics are as strong a defensive unit as any in recent memory. No one on their team can be exploited, and everyone is capable of great individual and team defense. Their defense is an historic one, which is why their matchup against an all time dynamic Warriors offense will be amazing to watch. Of course, with the incredible ball movement comes turnovers, and for the Warriors, usually more than anyone would like to admit. They give up the ball, a lot, and the Celtics will capitalize on every mistake possible. The Warriors have to be disciplined on offense and execute because they are already extremely prone to turning the ball over. It is very scary knowing that a team that turns the ball over as much as the Warriors do are going up against such a stout defense like the Celtics.  

My favorite part about the NBA is legacy talk. It adds so much drama and intrigue to the game, making it like a soap opera that you cannot take your eyes off of. The Warriors have already cemented themselves as having one of the best runs in NBA history, but winning the 2022 NBA Finals would put them in an even higher tier of NBA status. It would put them with the likes of the Bulls and the Spurs as having two different eras, with the Warriors just two seasons ago having the worst record in the NBA. With the core three of Curry, Klay, and Dray just past their prime with many years left of competitive basketball in them, the Warriors are entering a fascinating new era that could create another set of Finals runs, with the core three coinciding with a new, talented core of Poole, Kuminga, Moody, Wiseman, and Wiggins. As for the Celtics, the 18th banner would be their first since 2008. The Tatum and Brown duo would officially quiet any doubt that they cannot win together. Even though they have five seasons together, both are still so young. Winning their first together would give them the confidence to potentially win more and run the NBA together, becoming an all time legendary duo. Tatum would cement himself as the official best under 25 player. I am all here for the Luka argument, but that is just how it goes. If Tatum wins a championship, you are obligated to put him above Luka, despite him having a better team around him. 

Regardless of who wins and loses, what both teams have going for them is that they are both positioned fantastically for the near and far future. For the Warriors, Poole is already cemented in the Warriors present, but once Kuminga and Moody get more experience and develop into the great players I think they can be, they will be the perfect prototypical 3 and D players that every championship team needs. For the Celtics, you are set with a 24 and 25 year old Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown that can score and defend multiple positions with great intensity that it doesn’t matter who you put around them, they will keep you in Finals contention every year. Both teams have great futures, and certainly have had great present seasons.