With the beginning of the 77th NBA season, many are excited and hopeful for their team’s chances at winning the finals. Favorites like defending Champion Golden State Warriors and Eastern Conference Champion Boston Celtics tipped off against two other powerhouses, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Philadelphia Seventy Sixers.
The season began in Boston where the Celtics hosted the Sixers in TD Garden. Both teams looked good in the first half as Celtics forwards Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown picked up where they left off last season helping the Celtics to score 63 points in the first half. But through a scoring drought in the second quarter, the Sixers with the resilience efforts of guard James Harden managed to tie the game at halftime.
The Celtics picked up the pace in the 3rd, slowing down Philadelphia’s offense, only allowing 25 points in the quarter. Beginning the fourth quarter with a ten-point lead, the Celtics kept a hold on their lead and won the game 126-117. Tatum and Brown finished with 35 points each, causing their team to be looked at as an early favorite to make it out of the Eastern Conference for the second straight year.
The second game of the night began with the 2021-2022 Champion Golden State Warriors ring ceremony. Midway through the first half, the Warriors and Lakers were neck in neck with the Warriors having a three-point lead. Through the second quarter, Anthony Davis dominated on both sides of the ball, but at the half, the Warriors still managed a seven-point lead. In the third quarter, though, the Warrior’s number one defense from last year shined through, helping their offense outscore the Lakers by 13 points and resulting in a 20-point lead going into the fourth. In the last couple minutes of the game Warriors guard and finals MVP, Stephen Curry finally caught fire from three, helping push the Warriors to the finish line and proving that he still is one of the best players in the NBA and is still capable of leading his teams to another NBA finals.
The NBA always has great games set up all through opening week, and opening night did not disappoint as we saw stars shine and got a great look at what the rest of the week holds. Things are looking promising for another great year of NBA basketball.
The NBA has now officially tipped off and with the league being filled with promising new talent new teams rise and dynasties fall, and NBA basketball has never been better.