2022 NBA Finals preview: Golden State Warriors host Boston Celtics in Game 1

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It’s been over five months since the start of the 2021-2022 NBA regular season, and we’ve finally reached the finish line. 

Game 1 of the NBA Finals tips off Thursday night in San Francisco, when the Boston Celtics head to Chase Center to take on the Golden State Warriors. 

It’s a matchup between one of the NBA’s most storied franchises, and the organization that has been "light years" ahead of the rest of the league for the past decade. 

Here’s a brief look at each team as the NBA prepares to crown a champion.

CELTICS HOLD OFF HEAT IN GAME 7, REACH NBA FINALS

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum after making a three point basket against the Heat during the Eastern Conference Finals at FTX Arena in Miami, Florida, on May 29, 2022. (Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

As 2021 turned into 2022, the Celtics were dead and buried. Sitting at 16-19, and looking like a team that would be in the NBA’s play-in tournament, the future for Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum as the cornerstones of the franchise was very much in doubt. 

First-year head coach Ime Udoka’s message was clearly not resonating, and the thought that Boston would be a championship contender was laughable. 

And then it all turned around. 

Led by the best defense in the NBA, Boston won 35 of its final 47 games, securing the two-seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. 

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After a sweep of the Brooklyn Nets in the first round, Boston came back from a 3-2 deficit to the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round, winning Game 7 on the road to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals against the Miami Heat. 

The Celtics managed to