BOSTON (AP) – The Golden State Warriors are again NBA champions, beating the Boston Celtics 103-90 on Thursday night for their fourth title in eight seasons.
Stephen Curry scored 34 points and was named MVP of the NBA Finals as the Warriors won their seventh franchise championship overall. And this one ended the journey like no other, after a series of five consecutive finals, then a sharp drop to the bottom of the NBA and now a return to greatness just two seasons after the worst record in the league.
For Curry, Clay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala, this is the fourth championship. The first three rings were in 2015, 2017 and 2018, when Golden State was dynastic and made five consecutive trips to the finals.
Injuries, including those that eliminated Thompson in 2 1/2 years, and changes in the lineup changed everything. But this season, with Thompson’s return around the middle of the road, the Warriors have finally returned.
Again on top too. Champions, again, denying the legendary Celtics what would be their record 18th championship, which would allow Boston to break the draw with the Los Angeles Lakers for the most in league history.
This story for the Warriors ended much differently than what was their last appearance in the finals against Toronto in 2019, which saw Kevin Durant tear his Achilles tendon in Game 5, and then Thompson tore the ACL in what is became the Raptors’ title in Game 6.
The consequences of that loss were exacerbated by Durant’s decision to leave this summer as a free agency to join the Brooklyn Nets and Thompson’s own Achilles injury while rehabilitating his knee injury.
This threw the Golden State team into a reconstruction that turned into a recharge. The Warriors used their two-year break from the NBA’s biggest stages to rethink their roster – they added last number one in the draft Andrew Wiggins, who excelled in his first finals, along with another rising star in Jordan Poole.
Everything clicked. For Golden State coach Steve Kerr, this is the ninth overall championship after winning five as a player. He is the sixth coach to win four titles, joining Phil Jackson, Red Auerbach, John Kundla, Greg Popovic and Pat Riley.
Jaylan Brown leads the Celtics with 34 points. Al Horford added 19. Jason Tatum finished with 13 points, but shot only 6 of 18 from the field. Boston also made 22 turns, falling to 1-8 this postseason when it made 16 or more.
It was only the fifth defeat in 22 games in the Boston title series to turn his season around to win the crown. Boston were 25-25 after 50 games, then broke up to reach the finals and almost claim what would be just the second championship for the franchise since 1986.
This was the third consecutive season in which things were affected by the global COVID-19 pandemic, and although things were closer to normal, photos and videos from the championship celebration will serve as an eternal reminder that the virus is still a problem.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver was unable to attend the match because he remained on the league’s health and safety protocols related to the virus. The reworked Larry O’Brien trophy – the golden souvenir given to NBA champions – was presented to the Warriors by Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum.
Boston trailed by 22 points, but continued 16-4 in the third quarter to reduce the deficit to 76-66, entering the fourth.
Jaylan Brown’s triple made the score 86-78 with 5:33, but the Warriors did not give up the lead.
ADVICES
Warriors: 19 out of 45 left the line with 3 points. … Improved to 20-1 when Green makes a 3-pointer.
Celtics: Former Celtic Ray Allen, a member of Boston’s last championship team in 2008, was sitting on the court. Also present was Hall of Fame member Robert Parish.
RUNNING AND ANSWER
The Celtics came out to shoot, drawing energy from a deafening TD Garden crowd to take a 14-2 lead.
Golden State was not shaken and responded with a series of 35-8, which continued in the second quarter on the road to a lead of 22 points. The Warriors outscored the Celtics 27-17 for the period, leading 54-39 in the second half, when some Celtics fans booed the hosts as they left the court.
Boston responded in the third, but the Warriors found their range beyond the arc, connecting with six 3s in the fourth.
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