In our modern climate of partisan gridlock, where more people than ever have a platform for their voice and words to be seen and heard, it’s awfully difficult to build a consensus on just about anything. Except when it comes to this edition of the NBA Finals.
America believes the Golden State Warriors will be NBA champions again.
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Does anyone believe the Boston Celtics have a fighting chance to defy the odds and take home the Larry O’Brien Trophy, ultimately raising banner No. 18? A few people give the Boston Road Warriors (7-2 away from TD Garden these playoffs) a shot against the Golden State Warriors...but not many. Even though the Celtics are the only team with a winning record vs. the Warriors over the past seven seasons? Let’s take a look...
Vegas likes Golden State in the series, and in Game 1.
As does DraftKings, a Boston company no less! Though they do say it will go to a Game 7.
Meanwhile, 15 of 20 writers and hoop experts at ESPN pick Golden State.
As does Stephen A Smith. He’s calling Warriors in 7.
Over at CBS Sports, five of eight writers went with Golden State.
And from the “Dep’t of the Obvious,” NBC Sports Bay Area all went Warriors in six!
The lone places to give the Celtics the edge in the series? The Athletic gives a majority pick to Boston, interestingly enough by polling anonymously a scout, a coach and an executive working currently in the NBA.
The Sporting News says Celtics in seven, calling it a “rock fight of a series.” (We’ll take it!)
And the models at FiveThirtyEight.com... which give the C’s an 80% chance to win the Finals! Granted, 538 has developed an interesting reputation over the years, what from their Election Night 2016 calls to their Super Bowl 51 percentages. Still, we’re in “take what you can get” territory here.
Opinions are like neighbors, taxes and smartphones; everyone’s got ‘em! And while the majority of the people who get paid to talk basketball think the Warriors will come out on top, remember that these Celtics seem to respond heartily and play their best when adversity enters the chat and people are picking against them. So maybe this is taking shape perfectly for Boston to take it home after all.
Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Finals is set for Thursday at 9 p.m. from the Chase Center in San Francisco.
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