Stephen Curry-led Golden State Warriors are the overwhelming favorites in the Finals against the Boston Celtics, right? Wrong, according to analytics website 538 who instead gave the Jayson Tatum’s Celtics an 80% chance to win the series. It has shocked many because the conversation has been that this series is just coronation in waiting for the Warriors.
The dominant prediction among experts is that the Warriors will either comfortably get through or blow away this much “inferior” Celtics team to win the NBA title for the fourth time in the past ten years. Hence, this 538 prediction has come as a surprise to many fans.
FiveThirtyEight gives the Warriors a 20% chance of winning the finals pic.twitter.com/8ztwHoMGqy
— KNBR (@KNBR) May 31, 2022
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Fans have long wanted Stephen Curry to win his fourth and prove that he is one of the top 10 best players of all time. To fans, the team consisting of Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Jordan Poole is in no way losing to the Celtics side.
The Warriors have beaten the Denver Nuggets, a Dillon Brooks and Ja Morant less Memphis Grizzlies side and Luka Doncic led Dallas Mavericks side. Meanwhile, the Celtics have beaten teams like Brooklyn Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, and the Miami Heat.
Hence, why shouldn’t Curry and the Warriors be angry about it? These are some of the reactions from NBA Twitter:
That’s just nuts… warriors will have to shoot well and not turn it over endlessly. But Boston is 5th worst in last 5 min offensive efficiency and games are won in last 5 mins.., warriors in 5. Games
— Coach Tracy (@CoachTracy16) May 31, 2022
https://twitter.com/sadhotelsmusic/status/1531984275389571073?s=20&t=AwjtQ3e9-dnIklvkGSPbiw
Warriors in 5 🥱 https://t.co/NRA1z2djso
— кesvin (@Cixtra_) June 1, 2022
Warriors fans gonna use this as such “were underdogs” whole time they’re the damn favorites 😭 https://t.co/oKgmmG2TgX
— notazel (@notazel22) June 1, 2022
Wild. https://t.co/CiHWFsUJh1
— Bob Vance, Vance Refrigeration (@Don_Clandestine) June 1, 2022
Stephen Curry’s Warriors: Their Journey (2019-22)
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The Warriors have gone through a long path to come back to the Finals. In 2019, they lost to the Toronto Raptors 4-2 in their last Finals appearance. Since then, the Warriors have gone through a multitude of changes. Kevin Durant left them for the Brooklyn Nets, while Klay Thompson missed two years of his career due to an ACL and an Achilles injury. Stephen Curry, too, was injured at some points since 2019.
They weren’t invited back to play the bubble NBA season, as their record was the worst in the 2019-20 Western Conference. They had a record of 15-50 at that time. Last season, they qualified for the play-in tournament but failed to secure 7th or 8th seed. They lost to the Lakers and then got eliminated by Memphis.
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Who do you have as your NBA Finals winner? Is it the Golden State Warriors or the Boston Celtics? Discuss in the comments below.