BOSTON – Twenty-nine NBA teams have been chasing Golden State’s unprecedented level of greatness over the past few years. Finally, it appears that one squad may be closing in, according to Warriors coach Steve Kerr.
That team, he claims, is the Boston Celtics.
The two-time defending NBA champion Warriors faced one of their toughest battles of the season Saturday night inside a boisterous TD Garden, where they fought the C’s back and forth before finally coming out on top, 115-111. It marked the latest of many tightly-contested battles over the past few seasons between the two clubs, but this Celtics team, Kerr feels, is more talented than ever.
“They’re not far at all,” Kerr acknowledged after the game of how the C’s stack up against his Dubs. “They are one of the best teams in the league. They’re great defensively and they’ve got dynamic offensive players, they’re already one of the best.
“It will be interesting to see this year with LeBron (James) out of the East who comes out of the East,” he added. “And we have a lot of work to do to also get out of the West. A lot of great teams this year. I think the league is better this year than it’s been in a long time. A lot of great teams, but Boston is clearly a great two-way team and that is what it takes in the Playoffs.”
The C’s believe they have what it takes to beat the Warriors, especially after the way they played during Saturday night’s matchup.
“I just think that we can play with anyone,” said Al Horford, who logged 22 points, 13 rebounds, three assists and two blocks. “It was nice to go out there and compete in that way, give ourselves a chance to win there at the end. They’re the team to beat. Those guys, they really understand how to play. They know each other’s strengths and things like that. They play really well, so you have to play almost a flawless game to beat them.”
The Celtics, however, were not completely flawless Saturday night, as they made a couple of costly turnovers late in the game and missed some critical shots down the stretch. Those are the types of things that can’t be afforded against a team of Golden State’s caliber.
“Just staying poised in certain situations, finishing plays, continuing to do the little things,” Kyrie Irving said is the key to beating this Warriors team. “Obviously, going against the best, you don't have a lot of room to make mistakes, so just cleaning some of that stuff up. We played pretty well and had a few chances at the end, but it didn't go our way.”
With that being said, there still were a lot of positives did go Boston’s way. The C’s played with phenomenal effort on the offensive glass, corralling 15 rebounds and converting those for 23 second-chance points. They had an exceptional all-around effort out of Irving, who tallied 32 points, 10 assists, six rebounds and two steals over 40 minutes of action. And as a group, they gave everything they had on both ends of the floor for all 48 minutes.
To Warriors forward Kevin Durant, who notched a game-high 33 points, the Celtics looked like a “championship-caliber team.”
C’s coach Brad Stevens was impressed, as well. “I thought our guys played really hard,” he said. “You’ve just got to lock down all of your controllable to have a chance to beat this team.”
In recent times, the Celtics have proven that they can beat Golden State. They’re 3-4 against the Dubs over the past three-plus seasons, and the Warriors recognize them as a serious threat.
“It’s two great teams going at it,” said Golden State guard Stephen Curry, who knocked down six 3-pointers while scoring 24 points. “We bring the best out of each other.”
When the best is brought out of the Warriors, it’s nearly impossible for their opponent to overcome them. Though, they firmly believe after Saturday night’s barnburner in Boston that the Celtics are closer than ever.
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