2. Boston Celtics vs. 3. Golden State Warriors

For Boston they will attempting to win the franchise’s 18th championship. They haven’t been to the Finals since 2010. This time around, a new generation of stars led by Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown will be at the helm. Al Horford will be making his first Finals appearance in his career. Defense has been this teams claim to fame this year with Marcus Smart being named the Defensive Player of the Year. Tatum and Brown though do quite a bit for them offensively and that should continue if the Celtics want to hoist another banner.

Aside from the last two seasons, this will be Golden State’s sixth Finals appearance in the last eight seasons. It probably isn’t a coincidence that they didn’t contend for a championship the last two seasons because Klay Thompson wasn’t available due to multiple injuries. Now that he has returned this year, everything fell into place. It also helps to still have Stephen Curry and Draymond Green around. Not to mention a couple important pieces in Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole. The core has been playing to their capabilities. Will the supporting cast continue playing to theirs against a better defensive opponent?

Players to Watch: F Jayson Tatum and G Stephen Curry

Who Wins: Warriors in 7 games