MIP Picks – NBA Finals Edition

With the NBA Finals tipping off tonight our staff weighed in on the legacy defining series for both teams. In this edition of MIP Picks, we take a look at the matchup ahead and give our take on who will be holding Larry O’Brien when the clock hits zero.

The Warriors and Celtics are set to face off tonight in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. A tale of two different stories have come to a head in the first to four. On the Western side of the brackets the Warriors are on a revenge tour mixed with the drive to still prove it is their league. After the departure of Kevin Durant and the injuries to Klay Thompson, the “gold” standard of Bay Area basketball seemed to fade. The Warriors became a lottery team, struggling to get into the play-in last year and being swiftly eliminated by the Grizzlies thereafter. However, Kerr and the front office bet big on young talent and pieces that fit. Kevon Looney and Jordan Poole have continued to develop, they traded D’Angelo Russell to the Wolves for Andrew Wiggins, drafted James Wiseman, Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga in the last two drafts all for a chance to get back to this point. 

It wasn’t a matter of if with the Warriors but when. Questions surrounded the shape Klay Thompson would be in during his return or if he would resemble the player he once was, Draymond Green had struggled during the last two seasons and it just felt like the team was surpassed by the younger more dynamic Western Conference powerhouses. This year was about putting the doubters on notice, NBA analysts who waivered from the path were quickly reminded that Golden State wasn’t done contending. Steph Curry was an early MVP candidate, Klay Thompson is shooting 40% from three in the playoffs and Draymond Green is doing everything in between. These aren’t the splash brothers you remember, they have reinforcements in Jordan Poole (18 ppg) and the other young talent infused in their roster, but this team is just as deadly. 

On the other side of the court the Boston Celtics. Truthfully, it is hard to imagine this season being scripted any better for a storybook championship ending. January 16th the East looked much different than it does now. Boston was sitting at .500 and barely breathing as they stared down the top of the standings from the 11th seed. Rumors swirled about the viability of a Tatum and Brown partnership. Ime Udoka began to face mounting pressure to win and it just didn’t seem that anyone was having fun let alone success. The media put the Celtics under the microscope and many wrote off their season barring a miracle run. The C’s gave them just that. Once sitting 22-22 they finished the season as the two seed at 51-31 going 29-9 over the next 48 games of the season. Coming into the playoffs the hottest team in basketball, they swept Brooklyn, beat the defending champs in seven games and beat Miami on their home court to advance to The Finals. It feels like this team is written in the stars to win the championship. 

The questions, the pressure, the mock trades all out the window. Everyone seems to be inspired on the defensive end, hanging their hat on the gritty plays and making sure opposing teams are working every possession they have the ball. On offense Tatum and Brown are leading the charge, they aren’t just co-existing but learning to play together. Chemistry in Boston is high and Brad Stevens (mostly Danny Ainge) has put together a winner both on the court and on the bench. Even though there is zero finals experience on the floor for the Celtics, Udoka comes from the championship tree in San Antonio. Winning a championship in 2014 with San Antonio means that he has been here before, this isn’t a David vs. Goliath matchup but the tortoise and the hare. While the Warriors are faster and have run the race before, Boston’s slow and steady development over the years has finally put them in a position to win. 

Will it be a redemption tour for these Dubs on their way to capturing their fourth ring in the last six playoff appearances or is this Finals a passing of the torch to a new team with a deeply rooted championship bloodline in the the East?

Most Important Players this NBA Finals

Staff Picks