Canadian Andrew Wiggins will play a key role in the NBA Finals

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The Golden State Warriors vs. Boston Celtics matchup is an excellent one. It pits this era's premier team (Golden State is playing in its sixth Finals in eight years and going for its fourth title in that span) against one of the NBA's most iconic franchises (Boston is tied with the Lakers for the NBA record of 17 championships). It should be a close one too: the betting odds imply that the Warriors, who own home-court advantage for a potential Game 7, have about a 57 per cent chance of winning the series. Plus, a Canadian player will have a significant say in who ends up hoisting the Larry O'Brien Trophy.

To get you caught up, here are some things to know ahead of Game 1 tonight at 9 p.m. ET in San Francisco:

The vintage Warriors are back.

But then the Warriors changed too. After blowing a 3-1 lead and losing to LeBron James' Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2016 Finals, Golden State added superstar Kevin Durant to what was already the NBA's best team. Suddenly, the Warriors weren't so lovable anymore. They rattled off back-to-back championships in 2017 and '18, but the spark was gone. Golden State was simply too stacked to root for.

By the time their fifth straight Finals appearance ended with a defeat to the Toronto Raptors in 2019, it was time to break up the band. An unhappy Durant, who tore an Achilles early in that series, fled for Brooklyn while sharpshooter Klay Thompson, who tore an ACL, would end up missing the next two full seasons after suffering another devastating injury. Curry played only five games in 2019-20, and the Warriors missed the playoffs that year and the