Pure beautiful basketball, that’s how I would describe the 2022 Finals.
Smooth Ball movement, incredible off-ball movement, relentless and unnerving energy on both ends of the court by both these teams, GSW, known for their elite offence, and BOS, known for their lock-down defence. #WhataGame
Steve Kerr, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Igoudala clinch their fourth Title together.
Game 6, a match that many would say was dominated by the Warriors but I disagree.
The Celtics had a strong start. They Immediately took a double digit lead.
Then, after a timeout by Kerr the Warriors started to come together.
The Warriors started to click on all cylinders and put on a 21-0 run in a flash, a record-breaking feat in the finals in the last 50 years.
The Celtics struggled to find answers to put a stop to this. Then, J. Brown finally sunk a shot to clear the drought.
However, little did they know that the Warriors were just getting started.
First they covered the deficit with a 21-0 run. Then, they put on a 20-point lead.
The real credit for this run was team effort.
A sensational performance by D. Green putting on one of the best Finals shows ever made the difference. Green was doing a little bit of everything. He already had 7 Assists and Rebounds by halftime. He was pushing the ball, controlling the pace, dominating on both ends of the floor, finding guys, making plays.
His hustle was turned into points and stops by the other guys chiming in on every possession, not holding back and leaving it all out on the floor.
The Celtics didn’t lose their will yet.
They put on a defensive showdown in the 2nd half. They cut the lead to single digits and ended the 3rd with a 17-6 run.
The Celtics failed to keep their turnovers down and bank on the opportunities of defensive stops.
They kept coming on strong. They were facing foul troubles but the elimination game changes the coaching methods, so Ime Udoku kept his main guys in the game only with one poor decision to sit them in the start of the 4th even though the same group of guys who put on the 3rd quarter show could have utilised the opportunity while Curry was on bench.
The poor shot selection and facing elite level offence by Warriors shut the Celtics down.
The Celtics kept trying to get Curry on offence. There were moments in the 4th where it seemed like a one-on-one battle of Al Horford vs Curry.
But, instead of getting to see a basket scored on Curry it was more of witnessing his underrated defensive brilliance.
Al Horford was the energy booster for the Celtics. He was raining 3s in the 2nd half.
He scored 14 rebounds and 19 points while making 4 out of 5 shots from behind the arc.
He got help from Brown who had 34 points, 7 reb and 3 Assists.
There was no one else to help them on offence. Tatum struggled to match the intensity of the Warriors.
The Celtics were struggling and crying to the referees for a call.
Their frustration was resulting in bad offence.
On the defensive end they were phenomenal but the frustration from failed offensive plays got the better of them and shifted to their defensive end and that gave the Warriors the gap to break through and keep the lead.
The Warriors didn’t have an easy sail to the final minute. The Celtics kept trying and putting it all on the floor to push for a Game 7.
They came into this game with a 3-0 record facing elimination games.
They learned from their bad plays in the 1st half and came out strong in the second.
They didn’t settle with saying that they want a game 7, they put on a fight and showed it on the floor. But, their energy was ruined by poor ball handling and turnovers.
Stats :
GSW –
Steph Curry : 34 Points, 7 REB, 7 AST, 2 STL, 1 BLK | Klay : 12 Points, 2 AST, 2 STL |
Wiggins : 18 Points, 6 REB, 5 AST, 4 STL, 3 BLK |
D. Green : 12 Points, 12 REB, 8 AST, 2 STL, 2 BLK | J. Poole : 15 Points |
G. Payton II : 6 Points, 3 STL, 1 BLK | K. Looney : 7 REB, 1 AST |
Otto Porter Jr. : 6 Points, 2-3 (3-point shot)
BOS –
Tatum : 13 Points, 7 AST, 3 STL, 1 BLK | R. Williams : 10 Points, 5 BLK |
M. Smart : 9 Points, 6 REB, 9 AST, 2 STL |
As I sat to write this it was hard to focus. I couldn’t help but get emotional watching Steph Curry feeling those flurry of emotions, crying a little and then smiling.
All his hard-work paid off.
Steph Curry won the NBA Finals MVP, WCF MVP and All-Star MVP all in the same season.
The Warriors, coming off 2 years of struggle, going through injuries and facing a worst regular season record, bounced back so strongly, when even this year they were not thought of making it all the way to the Finals.
They are the 1st Team to do this, to make it from a worst regular season record to the NBA title within three years.
But, this group of guys, although may not be their most talented group, as Kerr’s main superstars are older and the majority of his troop was inexperienced for the Finals, they were still relentless and as Steve Kerr said it, this win means more than the other wins, because of coming off that struggle.
As Green says, this win is for Klay, who had been out the last two years due to injury but he made an unbelievable comeback.
Klay on being asked what this win meant had the expression, ‘Holy Cannoli this is crazy!’
However, the name for the main credit, to making this all possible, on everyone’s lips was Steph Curry! The Game Changer.
Curry achieved this playing high-level IQ simple basketball.
He did this against a defence that put the likes of Giannis and Durant away. He even took on M. Smart, the defensive player of the year, without hesitation. This is what should mark his legacy and should be reminded of to everyone.
The Magnificent player was showered with chants of MVP by his teammates.
Kerr, on being asked what this win meant ended his dialogue with, ‘Ask Steph, He’s the one who got us all here.’
An imperfectly perfect run for the Warriors. This whole group achieved a well-deserved feat.
If you remove even one piece they would have fallen short.
Everyone on the roster played a crucial role in this Championship run.
Although, Key Pieces –
Andrew Wiggins’ trade proved to be the best move for the Warriors. The Former No-1 draft, punched the Warriors up-a-notch. His athletic ability and defensive gameplay transcended their game to another level.
G. Payton II’ defense and Otto Porter jr’s gameplay added to the role of Andre Igoudala.
Otto Porter’s trade added size to an otherwise small roster with James Wiseman out.
Resigning Andre Igoudala, whose mere presence boosted the Warriors.
These four trades turned out to be crucial to reestablish themselves at the top.
The 75Th season ended on a competitive note.
We got to witness an incredible series and a beautiful game – the true basketball, without much ISO plays and more of a team game and a defensive showcase.
Now, I’ll let this win sink in.
Incredible year.
Relentless gameplay. Shocking results.
Unwavering spirit. Impossible shots.
Beautiful Game.
#WhataGame
#JOPO 