Draymond Green shrugged it off as a one-game aberration. Steve Kerr promised to "flush it down the toilet."
But Stephen Curry admitted there was some significance in the Boston Celtics' 52-point drubbing of his Golden State Warriors at TD Garden on Sunday.
"They’ve stayed motivated, hungry," Curry told reporters after the game when asked about the growth he's seen from the Celtics since the 2022 NBA Finals. "You always take those moments and understand you have to get better, and they’ve done that. ... The way they’ve been playing, they seem very sure of themselves and their identity and who they are. You give them credit."
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The Warriors opened the door for Boston by inexplicably leaving Jaylen Brown open in the first quarter. Brown responded by hitting 5 of 9 3-pointers in the first 12 minutes, as the Celtics made 10 of 16 threes overall as part of a 44-point first quarter.
"When you have a creative idea and it doesn't work and you're taking the ball out of the basket and they're hitting 10 threes in the first quarter, like, that's what we we used to do at teams," Curry said. "It's kind of demoralizing, especially on the road."
That last bite from Curry -- "That's what we used to do to teams" -- is worth emphasizing. The Warriors at their peak had an undeniable swagger and an ability to bury teams under an avalanche of 3-point shots. Their extreme confidence helped them win three championships in a four-year span from 2015 to 2018, then overcome a strong Celtics team in the 2022 NBA Finals despite Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green all being on the wrong side of 30.
Curry apparently sees some of that swagger in this Celtics team, which owns one of the best point differentials in NBA history (11.4) through 60 games and is the first team ever with three wins of 50-plus points in one season.
Of course, none of those gaudy stats will matter if the C's fall short in the 2024 playoffs. But it appears Boston's shortcomings in previous postseasons have motivated this squad to reach another level in the quest for Banner 18.
"They’re hungry again," Curry added. "The league is competitive at the top. They have a history that they kind of want to overcome. They’re playing well right now. Whatever motivation they’ve taken away from that, it shows."
