2022 NBA Finals: How to Watch Warriors at Celtics Game 3 on Wednesday
Coming off a shocking Game 1 loss, a game in which the Boston Celtics outscored the Golden State Warriors 40-16 in the fourth quarter, the Warriors knew that they needed to respond in a big way if they were to keep their title hopes alive.
Trailing 13-5 early on in the game, the Warriors were able to settle into a groove offensively in the first quarter after a rough start, as they ended the quarter shooting 4-5 from the floor, including three consecutive made three-pointers, to take a slim one-point lead.
With the Celtics continuing to fight in the second quarter due to Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combining for 36 of their team’s 50 first-half points, the Warriors led by just two points at halftime.
In Game 1, the Warriors came out blazing in the third quarter, outscoring the Celtics 38-24, and they continued their hot play in the third quarter in Game 2, outscoring Boston 35-14 in the third.
Everything was clicking for Golden State in the second-half on both ends of the court and after holding the Celtics to just 38 total second-half points, they were able to coast their way to a 107-88 victory and even up this NBA Finals series.
Holding Boston to just 88 points, their fewest points scored in these playoffs, the Warriors really solved the puzzle for how to guard their opponents in Game 2. Tatum and Brown were hitting shots early, but what really stood out about this one was the fact that Al Horford, Robert Williams III and Marcus Smart combined for just 6 points on 3-11 shooting for Boston.
After making six three-pointers in Game 1, Horford did not attempt a single outside shot in Game 2 and Smart struggled mightily all night long, making a single layup attempt and going 0-3 from deep.
As for Golden State, their defense was clicking and their ball movement in the second-half was unguardable at times. From Draymond Green and Gary Payton II causing havoc in the pick-and-roll alongside Stephen Curry to the Warriors capitalizing on Boston’s miscues offensively, Game 2 proved to be a complete beatdown in favor of Golden State.
Now heading to Boston for Games 3 and 4 with this series tied at 1-1, anything can happen! The Warriors always seem to win a road game in every postseason series they play in and for Boston, their offense struggling like it did on Sunday is definitely concerning.
Will the Warriors seize the momentum in this series by taking Game 3 in Boston or will the Celtics hold strong and put the pressure right back on Golden State?
The NBA Finals are here and this is everything you need to know as to how to watch Wednesday’s game, with gametimes and TV, lineups, bios and other must-know details.
How to watch Warriors vs. Celtics
- WHO: Golden State Warriors (1-1) vs. Boston Celtics (1-1)
- WHAT: 2022 NBA Finals - Game 3 (Series tied 1-1)
- WHEN: 9:00 p.m. ET, Wednesday, June 8
- WHERE: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
- TV: ABC
- Stream: Fubo.tv CLICK HERE
Key Stats & Facts For Warriors vs. Celtics
- The Celtics and Warriors faced off twice during the regular season with each team winning on the road.
- The Warriors finished the regular season ranking first in defensive rating and third in points allowed per game (105.5), while the Celtics finished the regular season ranking second in defensive rating and first in opponent’s points per game (104.5).
- Boston is 33-17 at home this season and Golden State is 25-23 on the road, including the postseason.
- The Celtics are 5-4 at home this postseason, the Warriors are 3-4 on the road.
- Jordan Poole, Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry are averaging a combined 63.5 points per game in the playoffs this year.
- This is the Warriors sixth appearance in the NBA Finals in the last eight seasons. They are just the fourth NBA team and twelfth franchise amongst the four major sports (NBA, NHL, NFL, MLB) to play in the championship series/game six times in an eight-year span, according to Elias Sports Bureau.
- Jayson Tatum has recorded 400 points, 100 rebounds, 100 assists and 50 three pointers in these playoffs, becoming the youngest player (24) to record such numbers in a single postseason.
What Happened In Game 2?
June 5, 2022 - Warriors 107, Celtics 88
Completely dismantling the Boston Celtics’ offense in the second-half, the Golden State Warriors outscored them 35-14 in the third quarter and 55-38 overall in the second-half of Game 2. Stephen Curry led the way offensively again for the Warriors, scoring 29 points on 5-12 shooting from three-point range, as Jordan Poole stepped up with 17 points on 5-9 shooting from three-point range. The Celtics turned the ball over 19 times in Game 2 and are outscored 40-24 in the paint by Golden State.
Key Stats From Game 2:
- Golden State went 15-37 (40.5%) and Boston went 15-37 (40.5%) from three-point range in Game 2.
- The Warriors turned the ball over 12 times, resulting in 15 points for the Celtics. Boston turned the ball over 19 times that resulted in 33 points for Golden State.
- The Celtics recorded 24 assists on a total of 30 made shots (80%), whereas the Warriors recorded 25 assists on a total of 39 made shots (64.1%).
Latest Injury News:
Warriors: James Wiseman (knee) - OUT, Andre Iguodala (back/neck) - QUESTIONABLE, Gary Payton II (elbow) - QUESTIONABLE, Otto Porter Jr. (foot) - QUESTIONABLE
Celtics: Robert Williams III (knee) - QUESTIONABLE
Projected Starters:
PROJECTED WARRIORS STARTERS:
- G Stephen Curry, 6-2 guard: 25.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 6.3 assists
- G Klay Thompson, 6-6 guard: 20.4 points, 3.9 rebounds
- F Andrew Wiggins, 6-7 forward: 17.2 points, 4.5 rebounds
- F Draymond Green, 6-6 forward: 7.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, 7.0 assists
- C Kevon Looney, 6-9 center: 6.0 points, 7.3 rebounds
PROJECTED CELTICS STARTERS:
- G Marcus Smart, 6-3 guard: 12.1 points, 5.9 assists
- G/F Jaylen Brown, 6-6 guard/forward: 23.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists
- F Jayson Tatum, 6-8 forward: 26.9 points, 8.0 rebounds, 4.4 assists
- F Al Horford, 6-9 forward: 10.2 points, 7.7 rebounds
- C Robert Williams III (Q), 6-8 center: 10.0 points, 9.6 rebounds
Betting Odds:
- The Celtics are currently 3.5-point favorites over the Celtics as of Wednesday morning, according to Fanduel.com.
- The over/under for this matchup is currently set at 212 total points.
What to watch for:
- The Golden State Warriors have won at least one road game in 26 straight playoff series, an NBA record streak that started in 2013 against the Denver Nuggets.
- The Boston Celtics were one of the best defensive teams in the NBA during the regular season, ranking second in defensive rating and being the only team to have all five starters receive at least one vote for NBA All-Defensive Team honors.
- The Warriors offensive rating of 115.7 in the 2022 NBA playoffs ranks first in the league, as does their 113.7 points per game in the postseason.
- The Celtics defensive rating of 105.9 in the 2022 NBA playoffs ranks second in the league and their 101.7 points allowed per game in the postseason ranks third.
- Golden State moves to 5-0 in the 2022 NBA Playoffs following a loss with their Game 2 victory, outscoring their opponents by an average of 15.4 points in those games.
- Al Horford, Marcus Smart, Robert Williams III and Derrick White combined for just 18 points in Game 2 after scoring a combined 73 points in Game 1.
- Golden State is 46-10 this season when they score at least 110 points, including the playoffs, and Boston is 53-17 this season when they hold their opponents to 110 points or less.
- The Celtics and Warriors have played a total of 25 playoff games and four playoff series all-time, winning all four meetings. The Celtics are 17-8 against the Warriors in the playoffs, including this year, but they have only faced them as the Philadelphia Warriors in 1958, 1960, 1962 and the San Francisco Warriors in 1964.
Related stories on 2022 NBA Finals
- 3 Things We Learned From Celtics-Warriors NBA Finals Game 2 On Sunday: The Golden State Warriors defeated the Boston Celtics 107-88 in Game 2 of the 2022 NBA Finals on Sunday to even this series up at 1-1 heading to Boston for the next two games. CLICK HERE.
- 2022 NBA Finals: Game 2 Sheds Light On Boston’s Consistency Issues: After forging a massive comeback in Game 1, the Boston Celtics lost 107-88 to the Golden State Warriors in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night due to their overall lack of offensive production. CLICK HERE.
- Steve Kerr Comments On Klay Thompson's Recent Shooting Slump Ahead Of Game 3: Klay Thompson has been struggling against the Boston Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals, but Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr does not seem too concerned about his All-Star ahead of Game 3. CLICK HERE.
