Nick Wright predicted the Warriors would beat the Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals, so the FS1 talking head should feel pretty good about Golden State’s 107-88 win over Boston in Game 2 on Sunday night at Chase Center. Right?
Not so fast.
Wright explained Monday he’s actually contemplating changing his pick despite the Warriors evening the best-of-seven series at one game apiece.
“I don’t believe in changing picks. However, I almost feel like there’s a bit of an honor if you change your pick right after the team that you picked to win dominated a game to tie a series,” Wright said on “First Things First.” “It’s not like changing a pick down 0-2, something like that. Right now would be the last time anyone would abandon the Warriors. I might do it. When’s Game 3, Wednesday? So I’ve got a couple of days to think about it.”
So, why the sudden change of heart?
“I would love to sit here and peacock and preen, you know what I mean, like I’m Draymond Green’s hype man. I would love to do it,” Wright continued. “There are a lot of things that happened in this basketball game that do not feel sustainable to me.
“I said it going into the series and I’m going to say it again: I think the Warriors’ path to winning the series is very simple. I think Steph Curry has to be spectacular. And to (Chris Broussard’s) point, 29 points doesn’t sound like it, but he only played three quarters (in Game 2). So he’s on pace for essentially a 40-point game, call it a 35-point game. Steph Curry’s impact was felt throughout, and those Steph Curry 3s in that building during a third-quarter run, they’re like the old Rock N’ Jock 10-point baskets. They count more than any basket in basketball. He hit them. I give him massive credit. I have real concern about his ability to do that three more times.
“I think Draymond Green is going to be thrown out of one of these games. I think he has guaranteed that with his behavior and his commentary. All of that makes me very anxious about the Warriors. I should’ve not picked.”
The Warriors completely collapsed in Game 1, with the Celtics turning a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit into a 12-point victory, but they made sure history didn’t repeat itself in Game 2 in San Francisco. Golden State outscored Boston 35-14 in the third quarter Sunday to build an advantage that proved insurmountable. The C’s were far too careless with the basketball throughout the contest, continuing a trend that has bitten Boston on several occasions this postseason.
Still, Wright has questions about the Dubs as the series shifts to Boston for Games 3 and 4. Because while the Golden State looked like the better team Sunday night, the Warriors really had no choice but to put forth their best effort. The Celtics, meanwhile, remain in good shape after splitting the first two games on the road.
“I think people are going to drastically overreact to this game,” Wright said. “And this feels weird, because I picked the Warriors, so I should be relieved that the Warriors won this game. I should be sitting here saying, ‘Eh, nothing to worry about now. It’s a best-of-five. The Warriors have the best player.’ But I’ve got to tell you, I don’t think the Celtics should feel that badly after that game.
“They hadn’t played poorly in a basketball game since Game 3 against Miami. They were due to have a bad game, that’s first of all. Second of all, they got tilted by two things: They got tilted by the refs early and Draymond throughout.”
Wright long has been a Celtics hater, so perhaps it’s only fitting that he finally starts to come around just as some other hoop heads consider jumping off the Boston bandwagon.
