The Boston Celtics will look to stretch their series lead when they play Game 4 at home against the Golden State Warriors. Will the Celtics move a win away from bringing back the title to Beantown? Or will the Warriors even it up?
The most important thing right now for the Warriors is how healthy Stephen Curry will be in Game 4 after hurting his ankle in Game 3. The latest reports suggest that Curry will be available to play this Friday, but in any case, the Warriors are going to need better support from the non-Curry guys, especially after Game 3 in which Golden State struggled to generate offense in the fourth. That being said, Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins scored 25 and 18 points, respectively, so they have momentum going for them. Draymond Green got bad treatment from the Celtics’ TD Garden crowd in Game 3, so that’s another motivation for him to bounce back with a much stronger performance in Game 4. Jordan Poole could pick up a bigger slack as well, considering the Curry’s heavy load and a seemingly shaky ankle. Poole is having an up-and-down series so far, though he shot 50 FG% in Game 3 in 24 minutes.
The Warriors are 4-1 against the spread in their last 5 games after a day o rest.
The Celtics are back in the driver’s seat after a towering victory in Game 3 at home. That puts Boston in a terrific spot to further expand their series lead, as they will try to go up 3-1 while still playing at TD Garden. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are on a groove following big performances in Game 3. Marcus Smart is always expected to figure a lot on defense, which is the same case for Robert Williams III. Smart and Williams dominated on that end of the floor in Game 3, especially Williams who was able to come away with 10 rebounds, 3 steals, and 4 blocks in 26 minutes. Smart had 5 turnovers but finished with a plus-19 thanks to a 24-point production and his being an impactful player defensively. Smart and the Celtics could have more success in slowing down Golden State’s offense even more with Curry playing on a bum ankle.
The Celtics are 11-4 against the spread in their last 15 NBA Finals games.
