What is the most successful basketball franchise in NBA history? The answer can only be one of two choices, and it’s the teams with 17 NBA Championships, the Boston Celtics or the Los Angeles Lakers. if the Celtics are going hit 18, and thus retake first place outright, they’ll have to overcome their very serious third quarter woes.
There is good news, however, for Boston, as they head back to the Garden having stolen away home court advantage from the Golden State Warriors.
They’re backed at -3.5 on Wednesday night, or -108 on the money line. The Celts were underdogs in game two, as they entered last night’s 107-88 blowout (in which they were outscored 35-14 in the third) +4 or +135 on the money line.
The Boston Celtics have seen their odds of winning the NBA Finals shorten as the season and postseason has progressed. They entered the 2021-22 campaign +3400, the postseason at +800 and the Finals at +130.
While the Warriors were considered the favorites, it’s a toss-up now as we have, potentially, more games to be played in Boston (three) than in the Bay Area (two).
Hence earning that split in the first two at Golden State was huge.
But homecourt advantage will be meaningless for Brad Stevens’ team if they can’t find a way to overcome their third quarter (where they have been outscored or 73-48, or 35 on aggregate) problems.
“I think tonight, turnovers, and I think sometimes letting our offense affect how we defend, kind of was a little stagnant in the third quarter,” said Jayson Tatum after the loss.
“I feel like it translated on the defensive end, and they got going and hitting shots and things like that.”
Added Celtics center Al Horford, in regard to the third quarter woes: “It’s something we have to fix.”
The Boston Celtics currently have the record for the most recorded wins of any NBA franchise, so they certainly know how to get things done and close the deal, but they aren’t the same franchise that they were under Red Auerbach. Boston only has one title since 1986, and that came back in 2008.
That said, this postseason, where they already took down the current NBA Champion Milwaukee Bucks, looks like their best chance to reach championship number 18.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.