Game 2 Review: Steph being Steph and Boston lays an egg

(Image Courtesy of TSN.ca/nba)

Last night, the Golden State Warriors were able to even up the 2022 NBA Finals at one game a piece. Leading the way in the 107-88 rout, was Golden State star Stephen Curry. Curry led all scorers with 29 points on 9/21 shooting from the field and 5/12 from three. However, this game was more about Boston playing poor than it was Golden State playing well.

Most of the problems Boston faced Sunday night, are continuations of the same problems that plagued them during the Eastern Conference Finals versus the Miami Heat. Two of the main problems for Boston against Miami, were turnovers and fouls. Against the Heat, Boston averaged 14.6 turnovers per game and 21.9 personal fouls per game. The 14.6 turnovers per game would have ranked 28th out of 30 teams during the regular season. Those problems reared their ugly head again last night.

Last night, Boston turned the ball over 18 times resulting in 22 points for Golden State. Boston also committed 18 personal fouls, resulting in 20 free throw attempts for Golden State. While on the other hand, Golden State turned it over 12 times and committed 17 personal fouls resulting in 17 free throw attempts for Boston.

Another huge problem for Boston on Sunday was lack of production from role players. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined for 45 points while the rest of the Boston starters combined for 6 points on 3/11 shooting from the field while committing 7 turnovers and not attempting a single free throw. By contrast, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined for 40 points, however the rest of the starters combined for 32 points on 12/21 shooting from the field while only committing 3 turnovers.

At the end of the day, the math is simple. When three of your starters combine for more turnovers than points, you are going to lose that game, and that was the story of game 2.