The Celtics beat the Warriors, 116-100, to go up 2-1 in the 2022 NBA Finals.
The Celtics were able to avoid the third-quarter collapse that doomed them in their Game 2 loss. They were outscored, 33-25, but entered the fourth with a five-point lead.
From there, Boston never let it get too close.
It was performances from Jaylen Brown, who scored 27 points (17 of them in the first quarter), and Jayson Tatum, who added 26 despite shooting just 3-9 from three, that keyed the Celtics to victory.
Robert Williams had struggled during the first two games of this series. But it didn’t seem like his surgically repaired knee was bothering him on Wednesday night. He added 8 points but really made his mark with his 10 rebounds (seven on defensive) and four blocks, and the Celtics scored 52 points in the paint.
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The Celtics didn’t let Golden State’s resident troublemaker Draymond Green get under their skin this time. Green scored just two points and when he fouled out with 4:07 to play in the fourth, the TD Garden crowd couldn’t have been happier to see him go.
Stephen Curry led all scorers with 31 points on 12-22 shooting. Klay Thompson had his best game of the series so far, scoring 25 — 7 of them on 13 three-point attempts (the most of any player).
It was the first NBA Finals game at the Garden since 2010. Game 4 is back here on Friday.
Read the Globe’s stories from Game 3
▪ On Basketball | There’s no question: Robert Williams’s determination and gutsy play is the difference for the Celtics during this magical run
▪ Celtics set the tone and never stopped, and other observations from the Game 3 win over Warriors
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▪ Watch: Warriors’ Draymond Green fouls out, and the TD Garden crowd can’t get enough
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Watch: Draymond Green fouls out, and the TD Garden crowd can’t get enough — 12:25 a.m.
By Christopher Price
Draymond Green fouled out late in the fourth quarter of Wednesday’s Game 3 at TD Garden, and the Boston crowd loved it.
Green, who had two points and four rebounds before leaving, picked up his sixth foul with 4:07 to go. Green didn’t go quietly — after he was whistled, he spent an extended stretch yelling at the officials before he sat on the bench.
Sullivan: With some help from the home crowd, the Celtics rebounded just as they have all postseason — 12:05 a.m.
Column by Tara Sullivan
If Game 2 of the NBA Finals will be remembered for the way Draymond Green got under the Celtics’ skin and climbed onto their last nerve, then Game 3 should be remembered for the way Celtics returned the favor.
With a huge assist from the home crowd.
Two wins from an NBA title for the Celtics now after a 116-100 win in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, a 2-1 series lead inching them one step closer to what would be a record 18th for the storied franchise.
Read Sullivan’s full column here.
Adam Himmelsbach’s observations — 11:50 p.m.
By Adam Himmelsbach
After spending the past two days listening to questions about whether they were capable of matching the Warriors’ physicality and toughness, the Celtics took the floor in Game 3 of the NBA Finals and showed they would not be pushed around. Not at home. Not on this stage. Not on this night.
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Chasing offensive rebounds as if they were dinner and attacking the rim with determined, focused drives, the Celtics set the tone with their aggression and never stopped, rolling to a 116-100 win at TD Garden that gave them a 2-1 series lead. Game 4 will be played at TD Garden on Friday night.
Jaylen Brown had 27 points and nine rebounds, Jayson Tatum had 26 points and nine assists, and Marcus Smart added 24 points and seven rebounds for Boston. The Celtics gobbled up 15 offensive rebounds, scored 22 second-chance points, and held a 52-26 edge in points in the paint.
The Celtics led by as many as 18 points in the first half, but the third quarter was once again their undoing, as the Warriors roared back and actually took an 83-82 lead on a Curry 3-pointer with 3:45 left. But Golden State’s lead was gone 33 seconds later when Smart drilled a 3-pointer, and Boston never trailed again.
Read Himmelsbach’s observations from the game.
Celtics win — 11:33 p.m.
They’re up 2-1.
The backups are in — 11:29 p.m.
Aaron Nesmith sighting! It’s 116-100 with 2:00 to play.
From Alex Speier: The Celtics are outrebounding the Warriors, 56-36, with just over 2 minutes left. In NBA Finals history, teams are 20-1 when pulling down at least 20 more boards than their opponents.
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Draymond Green fouls out, and TD Garden loses it — 11:25 p.m.
Draymond Green fouled out with 4:07 to play on a play involving Marcus Smart. He wasn’t happy about it, and made it clear to the officials. But the TD Garden crowd was pretty happy to see him go.
Finn: Curry looks like he hurt his leg. Horford dove on his leg while there was a scrum for a loose ball.
Scoring update: 5:00, fourth quarter — 11:21 p.m.
Celtics 110, Warriors 96
Marcus Smart just put the Celtics up by 14 with a big baseline 3.
Rob Williams is showing up — 11:10 p.m.
Finn: Such a gritty performance from Rob Williams, who beats Draymond to a loose ball that indirectly leads to a Tatum bucket, and then picks off a pass at midcourt. In 19 minutes, he has 6 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, and 3 blocks. I have to admit, I was wondering if we’d seem him tonight after he looked so out of sorts in Game 2.
It is loud in here — 11:06 p.m.
Kerr calls a time out after Grant Williams grabs an offensive rebound and puts it back up to make it 102-91 with 9:07 to play in the fourth.
What needs to happen for the Celtics in the fourth — 11:05 p.m.
Finn: Celtics bigs need to do better closing on Curry and Thompson coming off screens, and that means fighting under a screen if they have to rather than going over it. Rob in particular isn’t quick enough to get away with that right now; Jaylen needs to find his first-quarter form; no more missed Tatum layups; Smart needs to stop dribbling into traffic and making complicated kick-out passes.
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All doable!
How Udoka is deploying his rotation — 11:04 p.m.
Yang: Game 3 is the tightest rotation we’ve seen from Ime Udoka. Only seven minutes for Payton Pritchard. He’s basically riding with seven: the starters plus Derrick White and Grant Williams. The Celtics are obviously younger than the Warriors, but their main guys are logging heavy minutes.
The Celtics were outscored in the third, but it’s not so bad — 11:02 p.m.
McInerney: I was just saying to Tara I was soooo pessimistic but I feel like getting out of the third with the lead is a huge victory.
Yang: The Warriors ended up outscoring the Celtics, 33-25, in the third quarter. Not their worst showing. The Celtics head into the fourth with a four-point lead. I imagine Steph Curry will play all 12 minutes.
Finn: Yeah, pretty decent answer there after the Warriors went up 83-82 at the 3:32 mark. Smart hit his first 3 of the night, and Tatum hit a couple of free throws to put them up 4. Could have gone off the rails.
End of third quarter: Celtics 93, Warriors 89 — 10:58 p.m.
The Celtics entered the third quarter with a 12-point lead, and were outscored 33-25.
But they still hold the lead entering the fourth.
Jaylen Brown leads the Celtics with 24 points; Tatum has added 18 and Smart 16.
Steph Curry has 29.
Curry sits — 10:53 p.m.
Yang: Steph Curry is taking a rest with 2:53 remaining in the third quarter the Warriors are down by 4. Curry is up to 27 minutes. I wonder how long he sits.
Scoring update: 2:53, third quarter — 10:50 p.m.
Celtics 85, Warriors 83
Yang: We have a game here. The Warriors have a bit of foul trouble: Steph Curry and Draymond Green with 4; Kevon Looney with 3. For the Celtics, Al Horford and Robert Williams have three.
From Alex Speier: The Celtics are 8-2 during these playoffs when outscoring their opponent in the third quarter, including a 6-0 record when outscoring their opponent by at least 4 points. They’re 3-4 when getting outscored in the third quarter.
Horford gets called for the Flagrant 1, and it’s a big swing. — 10:43 p.m.
Finn: That’s flagrant, but none of the stuff Draymond pulls is. Stupid.
Yang: Big 7-point swing: Steph Curry made a 3-pointer and was fouled on the play by Al Horford. Officials then upgraded the call to a flagrant one, giving Curry two shots to make one and the ball. On Golden State’s ensuing possession, Otto Porter Jr. knocked down a three to bring the Warriors within two.
Finn: The rare 7-point possession. Where’s Alex?
Scoring update: 9:01, third quarter — 10:32 p.m.
Celtics 77, Warriors 64
Yang: The Warriors got within eight, thanks to Steph Curry, but then Curry made a silly decision to foul Marcus Smart, reaching from behind on a 3-point shot. Smart went to line and made all three of his free throws, while Curry picked up his fourth personal foul. He’s staying in the game, though.
Finn: Heck of a sequence for the Celtics. Smart hits all three free throws, then goes into hustle mode and deflects ball off Green out of bounds. Al Horford then proves he can throw the deep ball, immediately throwing long to Brown for a dunk. Lead is back up to 77-64, and Steve Kerr calls a timeout to remind the Warriors that the Celtics aren’t supposed to do these sort of things in the third quarter.
Wonder if part of the Warriors’ motivation for leaving Curry out there with four fouls is that it might bait Smart into focusing too much on his own offense.
It’s time for the third — 10:26 p.m.
The Celtics were outscored 38-24 in the third in Game 1. It was even worse — 35-14 — in Game 2.
Will that change tonight?
Yang: Celtics at the rim in the first half: 18 plays, 10 of 14, 4 fouls drawn. They have to stay aggressive.
Finn’s the good and the bad — 10:21 p.m.
The good and bad at halftime, with the Celtics leading 68-56:
The good: Jaylen (22 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, just 1 turnover). A first-half performance that was both electric and poised ... Seventeen quality minutes off the bench from Derrick White, who defended Curry well and contributed 7 points and 2 assists, including a beauty to Horford for a dunk ... Marcus Smart hit 4 of 6 shots and got some easy buckets in the paint. They were hunting Curry a little, and he’s in foul trouble with three.
The bad: Eight turnovers ... five missed free throws ... the third quarter has not been canceled.
Halftime show review — 10:18 p.m.
McInerney: Perhaps the Celtics asked Nelly to perform because of his deep St. Louis roots — just like star Jayson Tatum. But frankly, that was very underwhelming. Couldn’t keep up with “Country Grammar,” did only a small portion of “Hot in Herre,” and didn’t even touch “Air Force Ones”? Brutal.
What we thought of the first half — 10:14 p.m.
Yang: Aside from a couple of ugly turnovers and missed free throws, that half was very impressive by the Celtics.
They’re shooting 57.4 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from three. They’ve scored 32 points in the paint. They’ve out-rebounded the Warriors, 24-14. Some good stats all around. That being said, the Warriors are only down 12 and the third quarter is next.
We’ll see if the Celtics can rectify their third-quarter woes.
AT THE HALF: Celtics 68, Warriors 56 — 10:12 p.m.
The 68 first-half points were the most for the Celtics in an NBA Finals game since they scored 79 in the first half of Game 1 in 1985 against the Lakers.
Jaylen Brown has 22 points for the Celtics.
Klay Thompson leads the Warriors with 15.
Scoring update: 2:28, second quarter — 10:06 p.m.
Celtics 61, Warriors 49
A resounding Brown dunk puts Boston up 12. Al Horford forced the turnover, and Tatum made the extra pass.
They were up by as much as 18 but the Warriors have closed the gap.
Your thoughts on officiating? — 10:03 p.m.
Finn: My main pet peeve in this series so far might be late whistles. Horford got fouled at least twice before they finally called that on Looney.
McInerney: What are your thoughts on the whistles overall? I think it was Adam I saw on Twitter (or maybe you?) talking about how it’s nice that they’ve laid off late in the game and let these guys play.
Finn: Game 1 was a really well-officiated game. Allowed for great flow between two talented teams. Game 2, from the Draymond nonsense to Zach Zarba’s late whistles, to Tony Brothers’s overall ineptitude, was a mess. This has been better, and I think Scott Foster is a good official, but there has been some ticky-tack stuff called.
Scoring update: 4:27, second quarter — 9:58 p.m.
Celtics 56, Warriors 47
Welp, a quick 8-0 run by the Warriors has them within 9.
Yang: “Angry Ime” timeout after the Warriors cut Boston’s lead to single digits thanks to an 8-0 run. I thought he was going to call it after Andrew Wiggins’s dunk, but he waited. On the very next play, Marcus Smart threw a bad pass and Steph Curry drilled a 26-footer.
Scoring update: 6:00, second quarter — 9:51 p.m.
Celtics 54, Warriors 39
A few notes:
▪ The Celtics are shooting 50 percent from 3.
▪ Brown hasn’t scored in the second quarter yet.
▪ Robert WIlliiams is already up to 10 minutes, and he’s looking good — Washburn thinks it is the best he’s looked all series.
Finn: Rob is livelier than I expected. He’s getting off the floor a little. Four points, four rebounds, two blocks so far.
Yang: Kevon Looney just picked up his third personal foul with 5:31 remaining in the second quarter. He’ll likely have to sit, which will a big loss for the Warriors. Looney brings size and consistency to both ends of the floor.
Finn: Had Brown been able to dunk that super-casual Tatum lob, the Garden roof might have blown off.
Looney is one of those players you like more the more you see him. An All The Little Things guy, and a pain on the offensive boards.
Where Jaylen’s epic first quarter stands — 9:45 p.m.
Via Alex Speier:
Jaylen Brown’s 17-point first quarter was his fifth quarter in these playoffs in which he scored at least 15, tied for second most in the NBA this postseason. Only Jimmy Butler (6) had more such quarters.
This crowd has it out for Draymond — 9:42 p.m.
Yang: Grant Williams and Robert Williams are back at it after Williams was called for an offensive foul with Green defending him. The two had to be separated, and Green walked away clapping, but no technicals were called.
McInerney: And once again, the boos rain down.
End of first quarter: Celtics 33, Warriors 22 — 9:36 p.m.
Jaylen Brown has 17 of the Celtics’ 33 points.
Yang: An absolutely huge quarter for Jaylen Brown, who played every minute. Brown lead the Celtics with 17 points on 6 of 9 shooting, grabbed 5 rebounds, and dished 3 assists. He did not shy away from attacking Draymond Green, either. The key will be whether he can keep it going. Brown shot 4 of 6 for 13 points in the first quarter of Game 2, but made just one of his 11 shots for the rest of the game.
Alex Speier: In their franchise history, the Celtics are 73-8 when having a lead of at least 10 points after the first quarter. They’re 53-2 when doing so at home.
Finn: Jaylen’s had some incredible of basketball in his career, but that one might be at the top of the list. He also led the Celtics in assists (3) and rebounds (5) and committed just one turnover. With Draymond Green often defending him.
Celtics have a 13-point lead — 9:33 p.m.
It’s 30-17 with 1:46 to play.
Finn: Craziest stat so far: Celtics have 16 rebounds. Warriors have 3.
Celtics also have seven assists on their 10 baskets. The ball is moving.
No louder cheers than for Paul Pierce — 9:29 p.m.
McInerney: This crowd just went crazy seeing Pierce on the jumbotron. (They were pretty loud for Antoine Walker too.
Yang: But the first on the jumbotron was Guy Fieri, sitting with Dave Portnoy.
Finn: Fieri has done stuff with a couple of restaurants up here, and people rave about what a kind guy he is. Apparently he keeps lousy company, huh?
Scoring update: 5:00, first quarter — 9:23 p.m.
Celtics 20, Warriors 9
Yang: Steph Curry picked up his second personal foul with 5:44 remaining in the first quarter. With the Warriors already trailing 9-18, some big minutes are ahead... Can anybody else get going? Klay Thompson hasn’t established any offensive rhythm this series and is 0 of 3 to start.
Wow. After the timeout, Curry stays in the game even with his two fouls. The decision speaks to his importance to Golden State’s offense.
Scoring update: 8:20, first quarter — 9:14 p.m.
Celtics 12, Warriors 7
Finn: Interesting to see White come in for Williams a little over 3 minutes into the quarter. They’re going to need 30-plus good minutes out of him tonight, I think.
Yang: Jayson Tatum took some extra time to hold his right shoulder and shake out his arm after getting fouled by Kevon Looney. Tatum went to the floor with a stinger in Game 3 against Miami but hasn’t been on the injury report lately. Something to monitor ...
McInerney: In an unsurprising turn, the crowd is not happy with Draymond! First we heard “[Expletive] you, Draymond!” chants. Now, it’s the much tamer “Draymond sucks!”
Finn: Not usually a fan of Jaylen Brown dribbling a basketball, but having him initiate the offense a few extra feet behind the 3-point line has opened up their spacing, which Brown cited specifically as a problem in Game 2. Good adjustment, especially if he continues to be a willing playmaker.
Yang: Coach Ime Udoka kept Robert Williams in the starting lineup, but he subbed him out pretty quickly for Derrick White. Williams plays best above the rim, blocking shots and dunking alley-oops, but he’s been clearly hobbled this postseason. Asked about a potential lineup change, Udoka said the staff looks at switching coverages and substitution patterns first.
Finn: When we think alike on this stuff, it means it is 100 percent correct and will work out for the best. Put White down for 20 points.
Three things Finn is watching in Game 3 — 9:10 p.m.
▪ Don’t get caught up in the Draymond drama: The Warriors’ Mouth That Never Rests outwitted the officials in Game 2, realizing that they would be hesitant to give him a second technical foul after he picked up one early. So he played as physically as anyone has against the Celtics this postseason, save for the occasional P.J. Tucker outburst, and he never stopped trying to agitate the Celtics. It was effective too, but that was at the Chase Center. The Celtics can’t get caught up in engaging with him. The Garden fans will handle that.
▪ Marcus Smart needs to be a point guard: The Celtics’ ball movement has been sporadic in this series, and in Game 2 Smart let bad habits seep in. He had five turnovers and just five assists while shooting 1 for 6 from the field and ending up in a guest starring role in way too many Steph Curry highlights. He’s hurting physically, but that’s no excuse for not playing the right way.
▪ Grant Williams and/or Derrick White need to step up: Robert Williams isn’t right, and he hasn’t been effective because of his knee injury. Daniel Theis isn’t the answer. The Celtics best hope is that White or Williams comes through in a small lineup. Or both
And we’re off (and it’s loud) — 9:07 p.m.
It is truly deafening here at the first NBA Finals game at the Garden since 2010.
Game 3 is already 🔥
— Boston Globe Sports (@BGlobeSports) June 9, 2022
Live updates: https://t.co/0I7ks3l0V6 pic.twitter.com/nICelHgMMO
Your predictions? — 9:00 p.m.
Here we go — 8:55 p.m.
You can feel the excitement here at TD Garden as gametime approaches. Tip is scheduled for about 9:07 p.m.
Welcome to Flavortown — 8:40 p.m.
The list of celebrities in attendance is out, and man, is it star-studded.
Among those here tonight: Rappers Jadakiss and Nelly — who is performing at halftime, by the way ... Ime Udoka’s partner Nia Long ... Bob Kraft and Bill Belichick, plus a host of Patriots (Damien Harris, Don’t’a Hightower, James White) ... John Wall ... Tons of Celtics legends, like Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce ... list goes on.
But my personal favorite? No other than the King of Flavortown himself, Guy Fieri. Let’s roll, brother.
Washburn: Here’s what the Celtics need to do to win — 8:25 p.m.
By Gary Washburn
There’s an art to trash talking and Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green is All-NBA at that skill, evident in his impact on the Warriors’ runaway Game 2 win over the Celtics.
It’s now on the Celtics to react to Green’s antics. They struggled with his physicality. Jaylen Brown was not only angry at Green’s foul on a 3-pointer but his leaving his large sneakers in Brown’s face as both lay on the floor, and Green pulling on Brown’s shorts as both rose.
Neither Jayson Tatum nor Brown are considered enforcers or trash talkers. Brown has more of a mean streak and faced up to Green during the skirmish, but both need to be more assertive and less tolerant as the series progresses.
Read the rest of Washburn’s On Basketball column here.
The NBA Finals war of words continued with Cedric Maxwell’s response to Draymond Green — 8:15 p.m.
By Hayden Bird
After Game 2 of the NBA Finals, in which the Warriors defeated the Celtics to even the series, former Celtics player and current Celtics radio broadcaster Cedric Maxwell had an assessment of Warriors forward Draymond Green during a video appearance with Gary Payton Sr.
“Let me just say this to you, and I am going to be as clear as I can,” said Maxwell. “That [expletive] Draymond Green was doing? During the 1980s, he’d [have] got knocked the [expletive] out.”
Green responded to Maxwell during a press conference on Tuesday.
“There were a few guys back then that would lay you out, that would knock you out, that would foul you and get thrown out the game,” Green said. “Bill Laimbeer. Rick Mahorn. But everybody running around acting like they were that. Y’all were getting bullied. So it baffles me when every guy, just because they played in the ‘80s, just because they played in the ‘90s, is like, man, if you played in our day, you’d get knocked out. No, not really, because it wouldn’t be you.”
Read the rest of the story here.
Bill Walton rode the Orange Line to the Celtics game — 8:10 p.m.
Check it out here:
Bill Walton taking the T to the TD Garden to watch his @celtics host Game 3! #NBA75 pic.twitter.com/1vHUlxwlFH
— NBA History (@NBAHistory) June 8, 2022
Gary Payton II thought the TD Garden rim was too high. He was right. — 8:00 p.m.
By Adam Himmelsbach
Warriors guard Gary Payton was warming up prior to Game 3 of the NBA Finals at TD Garden on Wednesday when he noticed that the basket looked a bit high. According to a Warriors team spokesperson, Payton pointed it out to NBA officials, the basket was measured, and he was correct.
The basket was then reset to 10 feet with just under two hours left before tipoff, and warm-ups continued on as usual. Warriors coach Steve Kerr was unaware of the issue when he was asked about it during his pregame press conference.
“It’s a good thing the game starts at midnight,” he quipped, referring to the 9 p.m. start. “We’ll have plenty of time to fix it.”
Kerr went on to add that such a mishap is not especially uncommon during a season.
“It happens every once in a while,” he said. “Players have a really sharp eye for that. Players can tell. I imagine somebody went out there, looked at it, didn’t look right. So as long as they take care of it, then everything is good.”
Mayor Michelle Wu is no bandwagon Celtics supporter. She’s a superfan. — 7:55 p.m.
By Nicole Yang
Among the Celtics fans gathered at Sam Adams Park near Faneuil Hall to watch Game 2 of the NBA Finals last Sunday were none other than Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and her two sons, 7-year-old Blaise and 4-year-old Cass. With the series starting at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Wu had coordinated with the Celtics and city agencies to give fans an opportunity to cheer on the team from afar.
But Wu’s presence at the event was hardly performative.
No, Wu is not a bandwagoner. She’s a superfan.
Growing up in Chicago in the 1990s, Wu’s introduction to basketball was actually Michael Jordan and the Bulls. Her parents, who immigrated to the US from Taiwan, didn’t allow her or her siblings to watch much television. There was one exception: Bulls games.
Ready for Game 3! ☘️ pic.twitter.com/ofYVdVwX8F
— Mayor Michelle Wu 吳弭 (@MayorWu) June 9, 2022
Klay Thompson’s slump busting secret? His own YouTube highlights. — 7:40 p.m.
By Nicole Yang
When Warriors star Klay Thompson is experiencing a shooting slump, sometimes he’ll turn to YouTube, type in “Game 6 Klay,” and rewatch some of the highlights from his postseason career. There are plenty of memorable moments for him to relive, as recent as his 30-point performance in Game 6 of this year’s Western Conference semifinals.
The tape is intended to keep Thompson’s confidence up, to remind him of what he is capable of producing, even in high-pressure situations. After missing back-to-back seasons with a torn ACL and torn Achilles’ tendon, Thompson stressed the importance of maintaining his mental strength.
“That’s the beauty of playing in today’s age,” Thompson said Tuesday afternoon. “You can go on YouTube and look up all your great moments.”
Read the rest of the story here.
Iguodala, Payton, Porter cleared to play for Warriors — 7:32 p.m.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said that Andre Iguodala, Gary Payton II, and Otto Porter Jr. will be available for Golden State tonight.
Iguodala is dealing with a disc issue in his neck. Payton is is recovering from a fractured left elbow suffered in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals. Porter suffered a foot injury in the West finals and missed the last two games.
Warriors rocking City Edition — 7:30 p.m.
Rockin' the City Edition unis tonight in Boston ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/s7nuuqbyvl
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) June 8, 2022
Steve Kerr’s interesting connection to Celtics lore — 7:25 p.m.
By Adam Himmelsbach
In Game 4 of the 1984 NBA Finals, Lakers forward Kurt Rambis broke free on a fast break and was clotheslined by Celtics forward Kevin McHale.
Rambis sprung up to challenge McHale before he stumbled again, and the teams had to be separated before things escalated. And in one of the last rows in the upper reaches of the Forum, 18-year-old Steve Kerr watched it all unfold.
“There’s a mystique that exists with the Celtics, for sure,” the Warriors coach said. “Incredible franchise, incredible history. And for me, just having grown up watching those games and being a fan, it’s pretty cool to be coaching in the Finals against them.”
Read the rest of the story here.
Robert Williams is good to go — 7:17 p.m.
Ime Udoka said during his pregame availability that center Robert Williams will start for the Celtics.
All players are healthy. Expect a typical starting lineup.
Trying to snag a ticket? Boston police issues warning on fraud — 7:15 p.m.
By Travis Andersen
Boston police and the federal Homeland Security Investigations agency are warning Celtics fans looking to buy tickets to Game 3 and subsequent games of the NBA Finals to only make purchases from official ticket brokers, cautioning that other parties offering tickets may in fact be hawking phony ones.
The Boston Police Department on Tuesday posted a statement about counterfeit ticket scams to its official website Tuesday, one day before the Celtics take on the Golden State Warriors in a pivotal Game 3 matchup at TD Garden. The best-of-seven championship series is currently tied at 1-1.
Police said they hope to “proactively curb” fraudsters by encouraging buyers “to only purchase from official vendors.”
Boston Police Sergeant Detective John Boyle, a department spokesman, said police are “getting a lot of reports” of phony sales, though a specific number wasn’t available Wednesday.
“We just want to get it out there and raise as much public awareness as we can,” Boyle said. “You’re taking a major chance going through a secondary source” other than an official broker.
It will take a lot of green if you want to see a Celtics game at the Garden — 7:10 p.m.
By Michael Silverman
The average price of an NBA Finals ticket is sitting around $1,500, depending on which ticket broker you use, with the cheapest ticket approaching $1,000 for Games 3 and 4 Wednesday and Friday.
For a potential clinching Game 6 next Thursday, the cheapest ticket has already cleared $1,000.
“The demand for these games has really been unprecedented,” said Jim Holzman, owner of Ace Ticket. “I think it’s the combination of the last two years where 90 percent of people were not going to anything, that people realize while we’ve had this great Boston run, you never know if or when a Boston team is in the finals.”
Read the rest of the story here.
We’re back in Boston 👋 — 7:00 p.m.
Hello from TD Garden! The Celtics and Warriors are tied at 1-1 as this series shifts back east.
Here’s what you might have missed the past few days ...
- Warriors seem to relish playing an opponent with the mystique and history of the Celtics
- Mayor Michelle Wu is no bandwagon Celtics supporter — she’s a superfan
- The NBA Finals war of words continued with Cedric Maxwell’s response to Draymond Green
- On Basketball: The Celtics — particularly Jayson Tatum — can’t be the nice guys against Draymond Green and the Warriors
- Warriors star Klay Thompson’s slump busting secret? His own YouTube highlights.
- How will the Celtics respond to Warriors agitator Draymond Green in Game 3? ‘Block it out, or meet physicality with physicality.’
Nicole Yang can be reached at nicole.yang@globe.com.Follow her @nicolecyang. Chad Finn can be reached at chad.finn@globe.com. Follow him @GlobeChadFinn. Katie McInerney can be reached at katie.mcinerney@globe.com. Follow her @k8tmac.