Golden State Warriors vs Boston Celtics Prediction & Betting Tips - NBA

Prediction published on 04/06/2022, 10:30  by Joseph King | Modified on 04/06/2022 at 17:30 in Basketball Predictions

Game two of the NBA Finals tips off on Sunday with the Golden State Warriors looking to avoid dropping to a 0-2 hole after losing game one by a score of 120-108. The Celtics gave their title hopes a massive boost by taking game one and are now the oddsmakers betting favorites to win their first title since the 2008 season. Boston was red hot from the field in game one, making 50.6% of their field goals and shooting a phenomenal 21/41 from beyond the arc. While the Warriors certainly didn’t shoot poorly, hitting 42.2% of their threes, they’ll need to limit the amount of open looks the Celtics get in game two or they could be looking at an untenable situation. This is a seasoned Warriors quad with championship DNA so an improved performance on both sides of the ball is to be expected. 

The term “must-win game” gets thrown around rather loosely these days but it’s fair to say that the Warriors cannot afford to go down 0-2 with the series heading back to Boston for games three and four. Teams who win game one in the NBA playoffs go on to win the series 78% of the time and that number jumps to a massive 92.8% when the team takes a 2-0 series lead. The Warriors will come out desperate, with their backs effectively against the wall despite it only being the second game of the series. Boston is a magnificently talented squad but having already achieved their goal of snatching home court advantage away from Golden State, we could see them subconsciously take their foot off the gas.