Warriors Now Have Value to Win NBA Finals After Game 1 Loss vs. Celtics

2022 NBA Finals - Game One
2022 NBA Finals - Game One / Ezra Shaw/GettyImages
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The Warriors got beat at their own game in Game 1 of the Finals. The Celtics dominated the fourth quarter, splashing threes from every area on the floor and outscored the Warriors 40-16 in the fourth. 

Boston now leads 1-0 and is now the favorite to win the series. WynnBET has moved the Warriors from -155 favorites to +140 underdogs to win the Finals. Although this is an unusual spot for the Warriors to be in – only their third Game 1 loss of the Steve Kerr era – they are still extremely live to win the Finals. The silver lining for Warriors fans is that they have actual value to win it all.

Odds To Win The NBA Finals

  • Celtics: -170
  • Warriors: +140

The Celtics are rightfully the new favorites. In the Finals, teams that go up 1-0 win the series 70.7% of the time. However, recent history is skewed slightly more in the Warriors’ favor. 

In the last 10 NBA Finals, four teams have come back from a 1-0 deficit to win the series. This happened just last season when the Milwaukee Bucks came back from 0-2 and won the series in six games. 

The key to having faith in the Warriors is realizing that Golden State didn’t play poorly. The Warriors won the rebounding battle, didn’t turn the ball over at an astronomical rate and shot over 40% from downtown. They lost the game because of an incredibly hot shooting streak from the Celtics. 

The Warriors are 4.5-point favorites in Game 2 and history says they will get the job done. The Celtics haven’t responded as well as you'd think after a win. Including last night, the Celtics are 7-6 straight up and ATS following a win in the playoffs. They aren’t the type of team to completely dominate a series, which means that the Warriors should be in the driver’s seat from tip-off. 

Golden State will have to win a road game to gain control of this series again, but they’ve won a road playoff game in 26 straight series – an NBA record. If the Warriors can regain control of this series in Boston, the odds are actually more in their favor than they appear.


You can find Donnavan Smoot’s full betting record here.