Stephen Curry

Stephen Curry isn't motivated by the NBA Finals MVP Award, but the Golden State Warriors superstar acknowledged he'd like to feel the joy that comes with winning it.

Speaking to ESPN's Malika Andrews, Curry was asked what the award would mean to him.

"There's so much joy in that moment," he said. "You want to be able to experience it."

Steph Curry joined @malika_andrews on NBA Today and discussed what a Finals MVP would mean to him:

"There's just so much joy in that moment no matter what. ... You want to be able to experience it." pic.twitter.com/i6Vrl9xuB2

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) June 7, 2022

Curry is already a three-time NBA champion, a two-time regular-season MVP (including the only unanimous winner), an eight-time All-Star and arguably the greatest shooter in league history.

As he noted, the Finals MVP Award would "pretty much" mean the Warriors beat the Boston Celtics to win another title.

During Golden State's run of three championships in four seasons from 2014-15 to 2017-18, Andre Iguodala and Kevin Durant (twice) were named MVPs of the Finals.

Iguodala's honor for the 2014-15 Finals win over the Cleveland Cavaliers is easily the most controversial of those three. (He received seven of 11 votes; LeBron James received the other four.)

Speaking to The Athletic's Sam Amick on Saturday, a day before Game 2 against the Celtics, Iguodala discussed Curry's lack of a Bill Russell Finals MVP trophy.

"It just bothers me that you've got a guy of this caliber [in Curry] and they continue to take shots at him," he said. "There's no reason to take a shot at him. Great athletes, that doesn't happen as often. People tend to appreciate our great athletes more, but now that you're so close to them, you're just looking for ways to take shots."

Iguodala also mentioned that "no one takes anything away from Brett Favre," who led the Green Bay Packers to the Super Bowl title during the 1996 season. Desmond Howard was named MVP of the game against the New England Patriots.

Curry averaged 26.0 points, 6.3 assists and 5.2 rebounds per contest against the Cavs in 2015. He shot 44.3 percent (38.5 percent from three) in the six-game series.

Through two games against Boston, Curry is averaging 31.5 points, 4.5 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 3.0 steals with a 45.7 shooting percentage and 46.2 three-point percentage.

After splitting the first two games at the Chase Center, the Warriors and Celtics will play Game 3 at TD Garden at 9 p.m. ET Wednesday.

LeBron James is once again flirting with the idea of teaming up with Stephen Curry.

In the preview trailer for the upcoming episode of The Shop, James said the Warriors are the one remaining playoff team he'd want to play for.

"It'd be Golden State. I would love getting into a pissing match with Draymond [Green]; I love when somebody cusses me out," James said.

The four-time MVP previously identified Curry as the one NBA player he'd want to play with.

"In today's game, s--t, there some motherf--kers in today's game, but Steph Curry," James said on The Shop. "Steph Curry is the one that I want to play with for sure in today's game. ... I love everything about that guy. Lethal. Steph, when he get out his car, you better guard him right from the moment he pulls up to the arena. Soon as he get out of his car, you better guard his ass."

Curry's response was one of thanks-but-no-thanks flattery.

"Well, he's got his wish," Curry said on 95.7 The Game (h/t NBC Sports). "When he's the captain, he's picked me the last two All-Star Games. I don't know if that suffices, but I'm good right now. Whenever you get the interest or curiosity of what it would be like to play with the MVP-caliber dude that he is, one of the greatest of all time, it's cool. That's amazing. We all can live in that fantasy world."

It's unclear when the most recent episode of The Shop was taped, so James' choices among the remaining teams were likely limited to two or four. In the event it was taped ahead of the NBA Finals, odds are James didn't want to alienate Lakers nation by saying he'd want to play for the rival Celtics.

Either way, it's clear there's at least part of LeBron that's intrigued by the idea of playing alongside Curry and trading competitive barbs with Green.

It's ultimately a pipe dream given the cap constraints and unprecedented fallout that would occur. That said, we've all dipped our toes into the fantasy-draft waters on 2K before; to say they'd be a force to be reckoned with together is an understatement.

Stephen Curry has always been the most important figure in the Golden State Warriors' dynastic run. If that feels like a controversial statement, you haven't been paying attention.

Curry's 29-point outing in Game 2 of the NBA Finals evened the series and further underscored his centrality to the Warriors' operation. Afterward, Sports Illustrated's Howard Beck asked Draymond Green to compare past Finals runs that featured more supplementary offense around Curry (specifically in the form of Durant) to this one, in which Curry is a little shorter on help.

Draymond Green was specifically asked about Kevin Durant & the firepower the Warriors put around Steph Curry in the past. His response:

"It all starts with Steph. When KD was here, our offense still started with Steph. That's the way it's going to be."pic.twitter.com/KV7u28SN6k

— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) June 6, 2022

Green's answer exists in a world where the mere mention of Durant in conjunction with Curry or the Warriors generates buzz. Debates about KD, Curry and what it means that the former hasn't won on the biggest stage without the latter will outlast us all.

We don't have to get sucked into the take vortex on this one. All Green did was state a fact: The Warriors' offense starts with Steph, just like it always has—even when Durant was around winning Finals MVPs.

Curry was clearly the catalyst in Game 2, as he broke free from the incessant bump-grab-hold approach of a Boston Celtics defense hellbent on denying him room to breathe. After his 14 third-quarter points swung the game, it was Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, who's seen more than his share of awe-inspiring performances, who was short on air.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr’s summation of Steph Curry’s third quarter in Game 2: ‘Breathtaking.’

Curry scored 14 points but his offensive presence and defensive energy were essential to the pull-away quarter

— Monte Poole (@MontePooleNBCS) June 6, 2022

Standard Steph stuff, basically. The same quantifiable (points!) yet intangible ("offensive presence") impact he's brought for years.

We can make the case for Curry being Golden State's key figure regardless of the personnel around him using either of those factors, but we'll start with the numbers.

In Durant's first season with the Warriors, he and Curry played an identical 33.4 minutes per game. Curry averaged 17.1 more touches per contest and nearly doubled KD's time of possession. Durant's role grew in each of the next two seasons, but the trend of Curry operating on the ball at the center of Golden State's attack held true through KD's tenure.

If you take Green literally, "When KD was here, our offense still started with Steph" is undeniably true. That may seem like a narrow and deliberately drama-squashing way to treat the issue, but it's just the first step in appreciating the depth of Curry's impact.

On-off numbers can be dicey in small samples. But we've got three years of data here, and they shout down the noise to issue a very clear signal.

In each year of their partnership, Curry boosted Golden State's net rating by a larger margin than Durant. Starting in 2016-17, Steph's on-off differential was plus-17.6, followed by plus-13.0 in 2017-18 and plus-17.5 points per 100 possessions in 2018-19. Durant was no slouch, posting figures of plus-9.2, plus-1.6 and plus-14.3, respectively. But if we interpret "our offense still started with Steph" to mean he was the guy who made the biggest imprint, those stats are undeniable.

Enough numbers. What about a boots-on-the-ground perspective? Surely input from opposing coaches on all the attention they diverted from Curry to Durant and his lethal scoring will put the lie to Green's stance. Those Finals MVPs have to mean something, don't they?

"He's so dangerous, probably the most dangerous player in the league the way he can get hot... In 2017 and 2018m we blitzed him with Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson on the floor. That's how dangerous I think he is."

Ty Lue on Warriors' Stephen Curry. #Clippers pic.twitter.com/KKl46FAKzC

— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) February 15, 2022

It turns out Durant's Finals MVPs might actually be the best argument yet for Curry's significance in Golden State's offense.

After KD won his first Finals MVP in 2017, Golden State of Mind's Eric Apricot parsed the data from that series:

The first thing that probably jumps out at you is that Curry created a LOT more points for Durant than Durant did for Curry (almost four times as many!). This makes sense as Curry is meant to be more of a facilitator and Durant more of a finisher, but i was still surprised by the big difference.

I was also surprised by how much of his own scoring Curry generated himself. It really stands out when you watch the supercut video. Curry generated 78% of his own scoring, while KD generated 61%. The Warriors collectively produced more points for Durant than Curry, 26-25. In fact, not counting the bizarre Game 4, Curry produced more points solo than Durant did, 89-83.

Don't worry, there's plenty of visual evidence to support the numbers and anecdotes saying Curry has always been at the core of Golden State's success.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3mdM43RkNo?

Some of those clips are truly jarring. Durant ignored with the ball and a lane to the basket because Curry is floating toward the wing for a three? KD completely uncovered because his man trapped Steph above the arc? Wide-open jumpers and clean avenues to the bucket galore—all because Curry was the opponent's top priority whether he had the ball or not.

Credit Durant. He got buckets in big games. But nothing in basketball happens in isolation, and it was Curry's presence that positioned his teammates—even the great ones—to maximize their talents.

Maybe it'll help to break things down to a level even the reductive #Ringz culture can understand. Perhaps touch time, on-off splits, opposing coaches' admiration and literal video evidence aren't enough to validate Green's comments that Curry has always run the show.

So how about this: Curry has won at the highest level without Durant, and that's not the case in reverse.

Most likely, that's still not going to cut it for everyone. Durant is a conspicuously phenomenal player. He's 6'11" and moves with a combination of balletic grace and explosive speed. His brilliance is impossible to miss. You have to work a little harder and look a little closer to appreciate what Curry means to his team.

In the end, that feels right. To really get Steph, you can't take your eyes off him—not even for a second. That'll sound familiar to any defense that has ever tried to stop him.

Stats courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball Reference and Cleaning the Glass. Accurate through 2021-22 season. Salary info via Spotrac.

Golden State Warriors star point guard Stephen Curry was his spectacular self on Sunday, scoring a game-high 29 points to lead his team to a blowout win over the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the NBA Finals.

Curry told reporters after the game that he feels like it's up to him to shoulder the offensive load for the Warriors.

"I think this year, there's definitely a need for me to be aggressive throughout the game, to create, draw attention, get shots up and just continue to apply pressure," Curry said. "Obviously, these first two games, it's gone well. I don't know what it will look like on the road. The rest of the series, it's just always about being confident with the ball in my hands to make plays."

Steph acknowledges this version of the Dubs needs him to play aggressively throughout the game pic.twitter.com/ilWvsxXXTI

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) June 6, 2022

Curry was following up a 34-point performance in Thursday's Game 1 loss. He's taken 46 shots combined in the first two games of the series, and he's now averaging 31.5 points while shooting 45.7 percent from the field and 46.2 percent from beyond the arc.

The last time the Warriors were in the NBA Finals, former NBA MVP Kevin Durant was on the roster. But with the current roster construction, Curry acknowledged that he feels like it's necessary for him to be the focal point of the offense.

Curry's "Splash Brother" Klay Thompson has struggled so far against the Celtics, scoring just 11 points on 4-of-19 shooting on Sunday. Thompson has fully recovered from the devastating leg injuries that cost him over two years of his career, but he isn't operating as the same player he once was. It's even more imperative for Curry to play efficiently amid Thompson's shooting woes.

Jordan Poole gave the Warriors a boost in Game 2 with 17 points off the bench after being held to nine points in Game 1. Curry will continue to need help from supporting players if Golden State hopes to earn another title.

The Warriors and Celtics will return to action for Game 3 at TD Garden at 9 p.m. ET on Wednesday.

Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green told reporters Sunday that Stephen Curry has always been the catalyst of the offense, even when Kevin Durant played on the team from 2016-2019.

"When KD was here, our offense still started with Steph," Green said. "That's the way it's gonna be."

“When KD was here, our offense still started with Steph. That’s the way it’s always going to be.”

Dray on Steph being the focal point of the Warriors offense 👀 https://t.co/0fd5VGDDZQ

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 6, 2022

The offense certainly started with Curry on Sunday as he scored 14 of his game-high 29 points in the third quarter en route to the Warriors' 107-88 win over the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the NBA Finals.

Green certainly didn't seem like he was slighting Durant whatsoever, as he was responding to a question that specifically mentioned Durant's name. Rather, he appeared to be hyping up his own teammate after a phenomenal performance.

Regardless of whether the offense truly started with Curry, Durant or some combination of both during the KD portion of the Warriors' dynasty, there's no denying how incredible those teams' offenses were on a nightly basis.

Golden State's offense was first, third and first in offensive efficiency over those three years, per Basketball-Reference, winning three Western Conference titles and two NBA titles.

It was poetry in motion, regardless of whoever was leading the way on a given night.

That era ended in 2019 when KD left in free agency for the Brooklyn Nets. The Warriors have a new look these days, as they excel more on the defensive end (No. 1 in efficiency).

Curry is the clear leader of this team's offense—flanked by plenty of talent in Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole—as the Dubs look for their fourth NBA title since 2015.

The Warriors can take another step toward their championship quest in Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET in Boston. The best-of-seven series is tied at one game apiece.

The Golden State Warriors outscored the Boston Celtics 35-14 in the third quarter en route to a 107-88 win in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday.

Stephen Curry was the catalyst for that effort by scoring 14 of his game-high 29 points in the third quarter.

The Warriors orchestrated runs of 13-2 and 19-2 during the third quarter. Curry hit back-to-back threes in the latter run.

Steph Curry from D33P 💦

The @warriors are in the midst of a 11-0 run on ABC pic.twitter.com/2qT7pttNwv

— NBA (@NBA) June 6, 2022

For good measure, Jordan Poole hit a half-court buzzer-beater to finish it off.

Jordan Poole beats the buzzer from the deep end!

Start of Q4 on ABC pic.twitter.com/junP72I1YZ

— NBA (@NBA) June 6, 2022

The Dubs held an 87-64 edge at the end of the third quarter and led by as many as 29 points in the fourth before cruising to victory.

Curry ultimately led the way for the stress-free finish, and many people praised him for his efforts.

Steph took over….sheesh

— Tony Jones (@Tjonesonthenba) June 6, 2022

Naw Steph!!! That’s crazy lol

— Dez Bryant (@DezBryant) June 6, 2022

Best shooter in the game AND he worked hard on his defense the last few years ... Curry is something else.

— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) June 6, 2022

Steph is backpacking this game man

— Ry (@JustRyCole) June 6, 2022

steph's world, we're just living in it

— Saad Yousuf (@SaadYousuf126) June 6, 2022

https://twitter.com/ChrisPalmerNBA/status/1533634477666078720

It was another great Warriors' third-quarter run capped by Poole's back-to-back threes.

Feels like Jordan Poole was making a statement with those two big 3's at the end of the third quarter. Warriors up 87-64. They outscored Boston 35-14 in that third quarter.

— Connor Letourneau (@Con_Chron) June 6, 2022

That 16-2 run to close the quarter did a few key things.

1) Gave the Warriors a 23-point lead
2) Bought Curry some rest
3) Awakened Jordan Poole

— Marcus Thompson II (@ThompsonScribe) June 6, 2022

Half court 😭

— Alex Caruso (@ACFresh21) June 6, 2022

i want to meet someone someday who brings me joy like the warriors do in the third quarter of playoff games at home

— Anthony Dabbundo (@AnthonyDabbundo) June 6, 2022

The NBA Finals are now tied at one game apiece. Boston will host Golden State for Game 3 of the best-of-seven series on Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET.

The Golden State Warriors need to play much better in the fourth quarter of Game 2 to pull level with the Boston Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals.

Boston used a 40-16 edge in the final frame of Game 1 to take an edge in the series. It achieved that without Jayson Tatum showing up in the scoring column.

Tatum played the role of primary provider for Boston's top scorers. Al Horford and Derrick White combined for 47 points and 11 three-pointers.

The Celtics shot 51.2 percent from three-point range in Game 1. That production could dry up if the Warriors close out better from the three-point line or if Boston's output moves back toward its season average.

Golden State needs to make adjustments to avoid going down 0-2 before road-tripping to Boston for the next two games.

The Celtics could win the series in four or five games if they execute as well as they did Thursday and pick up on whatever Golden State's adjustments may be.

Dubs Need to Play Better 4th Quarter, 3-Point Defense

Golden State seemed to have Game 1 under control after it put together a plus-14 point differential in the third quarter.

The Warriors ran out of gas in the final stanza, as the Celtics responded with a plus-24 point differential to steal the Game 1 victory at Chase Center.

Steve Kerr's team gave up nine three-pointers in the final 12 minutes of Game 1. Al Horford, Derrick White, Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown all knocked down a pair of shots from beyond the arc.

Boston's 9-of-12 fourth quarter from three was a stark contrast from the third quarter in which it went 3-of-8 from deep.

Golden State allowed too many open looks in the fourth, and it failed to break free from Boston's perimeter defense on the other end of the floor. A repeat of Game 1's final quarter could result in Boston taking a 2-0 lead back home ahead of Wednesday's Game 3.

If the Warriors make the proper adjustments, they should feel much better about their chances of closing out Sunday's game.

Thompson, Tatum Lead Scoring Column

Klay Thompson and Jayson Tatum combined for 27 points in Game 1.

Each of their respective teams could use massive scoring performances out of them to create an edge in Game 2.

Thompson went 6-of-14 from the field and 3-of-7 from three-point range in a supporting role alongside Stephen Curry, who scored 21 of his 34 points in the first quarter.

Golden State needs more balance from its three-point shooters to ensure that Curry does not run out of gas in the fourth quarter and so that Boston cannot hone in on a single player and shuts down the offense.

Thompson's best performances of this postseason have come later in series. He closed out the Memphis Grizzlies with 30 points and finished off the Dallas Mavericks with 32 points. Golden State needs Game 5 or 6 Klay to show up in Game 2 to counter Boston's offense.

Tatum was still impactful in Game 1 with 13 assists despite having the second-lowest point total of Boston's starters.

Tatum could be the primary assister once again in Game 2, but there is an expectation that he steps up his point production to help Boston avoid the 12-point hole it was in after Thursday's third quarter.

Boston's top scorer produced three point totals in the teens before the NBA Finals. He responded to each of them with 30-point outputs in the following contest.

That could be a great sign for Boston as it tries to find the right combination to land a second win on the West Coast.

The Golden State Warriors lost to the Boston Celtics 120-108 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday, and Stephen Curry commented Saturday about the team's reaction after a disastrous fourth quarter.

"The locker room after Game 1 was rough," Curry told reporters. "We all know the opportunity we let slip away."

Golden State entered the fourth quarter with a 12-point lead, but the Celtics stormed back with brilliant performances from Al Horford and Jaylen Brown to outscore the Warriors 40-16.

That said, the Warriors are looking forward to Sunday's Game 2. Curry added that the team isn't panicking and knows what it needs to do before the series shifts to Boston.

"We have to come out with a sense of desperation in the first quarter," Curry told reporters.

Draymond Green told reporters following Game 1 that the Warriors would be "fine."

"They stayed within striking distance, and they made shots late," Green said. "We'll be fine. We'll figure out the ways we can stop them from getting those threes and take them away. But I don't think it was a rhythm thing. We pretty much dominated the game for the first 41, 42 minutes, so we'll be fine."

The Celtics made 21 of 41 three-pointers (51.2 percent). Horford made six of his eight three-point attempts, while Marcus Smart made four of seven and Derrick White made five of eight off the bench.

Entering Game 1, White was shooting just 27.6 percent from distance this postseason, while Smart was making 33.0 percent of his shots from deep. Horford had sunk 43.2 percent of his threes.

While it's probably safe to say the Celtics won't be as effective in every game, Golden State still needs to do a better job of defending those shots since a large portion of Boston's three-pointers were uncontested or minimally contested.

That said, the Celtics are arguably the best team the Warriors have played this postseason. Boston's identity has been to punch back when it's down and never give up. Golden State hasn't faced that moxie, dominating the Denver Nuggets, Memphis Grizzlies and Dallas Mavericks en route to the Finals.

Still, with Curry, Green and Klay Thompson, who have won three NBA titles with Golden State, the Warriors are well equipped.

Game 2 is set for 8 ET Sunday night at the Chase Center.

Draymond Green took responsibility for the Golden State Warriors' Game 1 loss in the NBA Finals.

"I failed him because I didn't play well," he said on his podcast when discussing Stephen Curry. "And when he comes out guns blazing like that, playing the way he's playing, I have to make sure that I do my part."

“When [Steph] comes out guns blazing like that, playing the way he’s playing, I have to make sure I do my part.”@Money23Green breaks down Game 1 of the NBA Finals. pic.twitter.com/ePifVytIZn

— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) June 4, 2022

Curry caught fire from the start with 21 points and six made three-pointers in the first quarter. It seemed as if the Warriors would cruise to a victory with a 12-point lead through three quarters and Curry playing like the future Hall of Famer he is, but the Boston Celtics won the fourth quarter 40-16 in stunning fashion.

The result was a 120-108 Boston win even though Curry finished with 34 points, five assists, five rebounds and three steals.

Considering Curry was so excellent, Jayson Tatum was an ugly 3-of-17 from the field and the game was in San Francisco, it was a shocking loss for the Warriors. While they are down just one game, it felt like an individual result that could linger and decide the series.

Green was part of the issue at just 2-of-12 from the field. If he was slightly better, Golden State likely wouldn't have wasted Curry's performance, although the Michigan State product found a way to impact the game in other ways with 11 rebounds, five assists and two steals before fouling out.

The Celtics also deserve plenty of praise not only for locking the Warriors down on the defensive end in the fourth quarter but also for catching fire from deep during their comeback.

Al Horford, Marcus Smart and Derrick White combined for 15 made three-pointers, which more than made up for Tatum's struggles. Boston's role players delivered in the key moments to support its star, while Green struggled as an offensive threat even when Curry was carrying the team on his back.

The three-time champion will surely look to bounce back in Sunday's Game 2.

The Boston Celtics produced the largest fourth-quarter differential in NBA Finals history without their star player contributing a lot in the scoring column.

Jayson Tatum did almost everything else but score in the fourth on Thursday, while Jaylen Brown, Al Horford and Derrick White finished off the Golden State Warriors in Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Finals.

Tatum shot 3-of-17 from the field and totaled 12 points, the fourth-highest total for his team. His distribution more than made up for his lack of scoring, as he dished out 13 of the team's 33 assists.

NBC Sports Boston's Chris Forsberg and Bleacher Report's Dan Favale both outlined how Tatum made a difference with his passing:

MassLive.com's Matt Vautour pointed out that Tatum recorded a plus-27 in the fourth quarter without making a basket:

Two of Boston's top three scorers in Game 1 were players acquired in trades over the last 12 months.

ESPN.com's Brian Windhorst outlined the makings of the Horford deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder that landed the big back in Boston, and how it marked a different style of deals between the team's two presidents of basketball operations, Brad Stevens and Danny Ainge:

"Stevens sent out a first-round pick, No. 16 last year, to do the deal. This wouldn't have been a typical Ainge move, as he preferred to hoard picks to use either on developmental players or as bait to chase a star. It wasn't that Ainge's process was flawed; the entire core of the team is players he drafted who have paid off. But at this point, Horford was a 35-year-old role player yet Stevens made getting him a priority—all a definite departure from the team's typical priorities."

Boston's midseason trade for White has turned out to be equally as important as the Horford deal last June.

CBSSports.com's Jack Maloney and Sam Quinn pointed out that the Celtics ended up getting a bargain in the White deal with the San Antonio Spurs that sent Josh Richardson and draft picks in the other direction:

"When the Celtics traded Josh Richardson, a 2021 first-round pick and a 2028 first-round pick swap to acquire Derrick White from the San Antonio Spurs, there were some who worried that they gave up too much for a guy who wouldn't even be in their starting lineup. As it turns out, they may not have given up enough."

Boston took Game 1 at the Chase Center despite giving up 21 first-quarter points to Stephen Curry. The Golden State star finished the game with 34 points, but only one other Warriors player had more than 15 points.

The Warriors' defensive play ultimately did them in, as Draymond Green left Horford open on four of his six makes, as The Athletic's Anthony Slater pointed out:

Slater floated out a possible change for Game 2 with Green defending Jaylen Brown instead of Horford:

"Maybe a possible Game 2 adjustment has Green on Jaylen Brown instead of Horford, getting him in the mix instead of floating too far off a shooter. Opponents have always had more success than normal against Green with a stretch big, using his aggressiveness against him. It's boring to just stick on an assignment in the corner. It's more fun and damaging to sprint into the tornado."

Green seemed to brush off some criticism regarding the Warriors' play after the contest by proclaiming the Warriors would "be fine," per Ben Golliver of the Washington Post.

Former Celtics center Kendrick Perkins thought the opposite about the Warriors, as he ripped into Green's comments on NBC Sports Boston's postgame show.

Golden State has two days to install whichever adjustments it needs to make to deal with the Celtics. Game 2 tips off at 8 p.m. ET Sunday.