Celtics vs Warriors: 4 Takeaways from Narrow Loss to Golden State

Could a 2022 Finals rematch be brewing?

Nov 6, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) celebrates during the second half against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images / Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images

On Wednesday night, Jayson Tatum and his Boston Celtics almost pulled off a miraculous second-half comeback against the Golden State Warriors in Chase Center. But that darned Stephen Curry, returning after an ankle injury, helped Golden State hold on long enough to secure an eventual 118-112 victory.

Things actually looked good for the Celtics early. After a strong 14-3 Boston start, the Warriors responded with a brutal 30-15 stretch, capped off by back-to-back Kyle Anderson treys, while throwing the Celtics out of rhythm with stellar defense. The Warriors would ride a 32-16 second quarter advantage to a 51-40 halftime lead. A 41-31 Celtics third frame put Boston within a point, but a flurry of plays around the basket late (from free throws to putbacks) helped Golden State ice the W in the fourth.

Curry scored 27 points on 8-of-17 shooting from the field (4-of-9 from deep) and 7-of-7 shooting from the foul line, passed for nine assists, grabbed seven rebounds, swiped four steals and blocked one shot.

With the win, the Warriors improved to a stellar 7-1 record on the year, while dropping the Celtics to 7-2 on the season.

Boston was without All-Star small forward Jaylen Brown and one-time All-Star center Kristaps Porzingis, while Golden State was missing bench guards Brandin Podziemski and De'Anthony Melton.

Here are our takeaways:

1. Was This A Finals Preview?

Golden State has looked to balance out its shooting with size and defense in the absence of ex-splash brother Klay Thompson, now with the Dallas Mavericks. Steve Kerr has futzed with his starting lineup a bit this season, shifting impending restricted free agent forward Jonathan Kuminga to a backup role with the squad.

His current starting five of Curry, shooting guard Moses Moody (who, unlike Kuminga, did agree to a rookie-scale contract extension this summer), small forward Andrew Wiggins, power forward Draymond Green, and second-year center Trayce Jackson-Davis is an intriguing mix of shooting and size. That means this summer's pricey swath of free agents — Buddy Hield, Kyle Anderson, and De'Anthony Melton (though Melton was hurt in this game) — have come off the bench. Hield has added a particularly prolific microwave scorer dimension to the club's offense. 2024 All-Rookie Team guard Brandin Podziemski has also been toggled between the bench and Kerr's starting units. Big man Kevon Looney and guard Gary Payton II have settled into bench roles, too.

Suddenly, the team is deep, but not the kind of All-Star-loaded squad that it was during Curry's MVP prime. Everything revolves around Curry, but these new pieces integrate well with the incumbent additions.

This is a pretty different-looking team than the 2022 club that bested Boston in a hard-fought, six-game NBA Finals encounter. The 2024-25 vintage of the Celtics, now replete with Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis, and that post-championship glow, is better, tougher, deeper and more confident than its 2023-24 incarnation. A respectable road loss tonight, without Porzingis or Brown, is hardly an indicator of how the two teams would fare in a series. Boston clearly has what it takes to repeat. It will be interesting to see if the Warriors get in their way.

2. The Celtics Shot 20 More 3-Pointers Than The Warriors... And Lost Anyway

Joe Mazzulla's Celtics out-Warriorsed the Warriors on Wednesday night, taking a whopping 54 triples (they made 19) to Golden State's meager 34 (they made 14, for a better 41.2 percent). This hyper-modern approach was ultimately undone by a massive Warriors advantage in points scored in the paint, 52-36.

3. Just How Good Can Neemias Queta Be?

Even with Al Horford back in his starting lineup, Joe Mazzulla opted to keep Queta in his first five. He moved Tatum down a position to accommodate the young big man, who jumped at the five spot, and Horford, who started at power forward. Queta rewarded Mazzulla's decision by outplaying Horford. He scored 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field and 2-of-4 from the foul line, grabbing eight rebounds, blocking two shots and registering a +13 in his 28:09 of action, the only positive plus-minus among Boston's starters.

4. Boston Showed Off Its Diverse Scoring in a Loss

All-NBA Celtics forward Jayson Tatum led all scorers with 32 points on 10-of-20 shooting from the floor (5-of-10 from long range) and 7-of-9 shooting from the charity stripe. All-Defensive Team guard Derrick White had 26 points on 8-of-19 shooting from the field (7-of-16 from deep) and 3-of-3 shooting from the foul line, plus six rebounds. Point guard Payton Pritchard, continuing his strong play of late, had 15 points, while the aforementioned Horford and Queta each scored in double figures.

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