@theMatrix24
Believe what you want but the stats and game footage don't support your claim. Foul calls were about even. Free throws were about even. The Celtics turned the ball over a bunch down the stretch of that first quarter. That was the difference. And I don't know how much you know about this Celtics team but they are a different monster when Time Lord is in. Him being hobbled, which led to 40 Warriors points in the paint, was also the difference. Not the refs.
@StumpTownStu
If you truly follow NBA basketball you should know that not every foul is created equal. For example, 3 fouls on a team’s star player in the 1st half of a game is not the same as 3 fouls on a bench player for the opposing team although it’ll show 3 team fouls apiece.
Last night is a perfect example of this. The Warriors fans will go around saying the whistle was even because the final fouls tally was 18-17 and GS ended up only shooting 3 more free throws than BOS. Those numbers don’t even begin to tell the story of the refereeing though. With 4:27 to go in the 1st quarter Jaylen Brown hit a 3PT to give him 13 points in the quarter and the Celtics a 9PT lead at 22-13. At 3:52, literally 35 seconds later, Jaylen Brown gets called for a shooting foul on Gary Payton II. On replay, Jaylen Brown makes absolutely no contact with GPII as he drives in for a layup which he missed. This gives Brown his 2nd foul in the quarter and sends him to the bench until the 2nd quarter. Jaylen Brown stopped playing aggressively due to this early foul trouble and even admitted post game that it threw off his rhythm. He was shooting 4-6 from the field prior to the 2nd foul and benching. After the 2nd foul he shot 1-11 from the field for the rest of the game.
Again, a quick gander at the box score at the end of the game shows BOS committed 19 fouls to GS 18. What the box score won’t show is that in the 3rd quarter when BOS was still playing their starters and GS went on their run, the foul discrepancy was actually BOS 18 fouls GS 13 fouls. The 4th quarter made the numbers look respectable when GS was whistled for 5 fouls to Boston’s 1 but at this point all starters had been pulled and the white flag was waving.
3rd and final point, Draymond Green got away with some egregious uncalled fouls/illegal screens and also should have been tossed from the game. It’s a fact and even Steve Javie, the NBA's officiating analyst, openly suggested on the league's official broadcast that the standard for calling a second technical and ejecting said player is flawed. A team committing 31 fouls during a game and only being whistled for 18 isn’t the same as a team committing 22 fouls during a game and only being whistled for 19 of them.
These are just my thoughts and who knows, maybe the refereeing being more accurate wouldn’t had made a difference in the last game. Or maybe it would have made all the difference?
These are the exact details I would not take the time to repeat or explain because it’s too time consuming and is like talking to a wall anyway. You are a student of the game, sir. Thanks for taking the time to educate people. 
@begginerboy
Thank you bb I contemplated even taking my time to write that wall of text because what I see lots in this forum are people with tunnel vision with certain teams and players. If I’m able to talk some reason into just 1 person it’s worth it.
for the record I’m not suggesting the league is fixed either. I don’t think the NBA is pushing some sort of hidden agenda for profit. I stopped believing that over a decade ago when the NBA and Nike never got the LeBron vs Kobe NBA Finals they so desperately wanted. Instead we were treated to Kobe vs Dwight Howard/Hedo Turkoglu lol. What I do believe is that sometimes NBA refs have bad days at the office. Just like anyone else in any other profession. Difference is that an NBA refs bad day at the office can potentially cost a team a win in the NBA Finals.
I’ll also add that these things tend to even out during the duration of a season for every team. They also tend to even out over the duration of a 7 game series. Certainly in the finals when the spotlight is on every missed or wrong whistle. I’d keep that in mind going forward in this series 
@jmrodrig
If you think the Celtics only committed 22 fouls and the Warriors committed 31 then you have lost your mind. Let's get one thing straight. The Celtics foul A LOT. All teams known for playing "physical defense" foul a lot. And the officials have repeatedly swallowed their whistles on many of those fouls, all postseason long. All three previous rounds. In many of those games, when the Celtics have hacked repeatedly, they still ended up with the free throw advantage. Probably most. It's what comes with playing "physical defense".
The Warriors have never been a team that has been given the benefit of the referees whistle. I promise you that fact won't be changed by this series.
Now to your point. True, not every foul is created equal. However, Jaylen Brown, and player I have loved since he committed to Cal, Cal doesn't typically get out of state commits if his caliber, is inconsistent. Look it up. So you can say, "He was on fire and the refs hit him with a 3rd foul so he had to sit and couldn't be as aggressive," but that's pure conjecture. You could also say, "He got his 3rd foul because he committed 3 fouls. He went cold because he is inconsistent."
The facts are the Warriors won the turnover battle 12-19. It's hard to beat the Warriors when they keep turnovers under 15. It's hard to beat anybody when you lose the turnover battle. The Warriors outscored the Celtics in the paint 40-24!! These two thing were the difference in the game. The Celtics are not the same team without the Time Lord. The Warriors took advantage of him being hobbled.
I like to call them momentum breakers. The refs have a feel for when and if a game is teetering and with their influence can alter the path. It happened in the 1st quarter. Listen to Bill Burr (comedian) on Kimmell, yes most think he was joking about officiating being rigged because he's a comic but he was very serious, but he's 100% correct.
Talk to guys about points in the paint, turnover differential, and how teams labeled as playing "physical defense" historically foul and it means nothing.
Make some anecdotal comment about how, "All fouls aren't created equal..." and you're a student of the game. You two are laughable.
@ActionMagnet
The momentum of flow of an NBA game is never altered in the first quarter. Sure, a ref can make a single call in the first quarter of a football game and complete alter the outcome of the game but not in a game in today's NBA.
The Celtics turned the ball over. They didn't defend the paint. That was the difference in this game. Period.
It's an anomaly that that the Warriors ONLY shot 20 FTs while scoring 40 in the paint. If they were a team like Dallas, Luka would have close to 20 attempts by himself. If they were a team like Boston, Tatum would have 20 attempts by himself.
You are not winning many NBA games giving up 40 in the point. You aren't winning many NBA games with a turnover differential of 7. The Celtics turned the ball over and without the Time Lord, they gave up 40 in the paint. That was the difference in this game. They are a different team when Williams III isn't there and healthy. That's it. It's funny how nobody can make a case with stats or actual basketball Xs and Os so they have to say, "Well, I know the Warriors weren't whistled more than the Celtics but all fouls aren't created equal," and "The game was given to Warriors in the first freaking quarter!"
It's true, all fouls aren't the same but the refs don't win alter an NBA basketball game in the first quarter unless the eject a key player.
The Warriors didn't win because the Time Lord, who has been the X-factor for the Celtics, was hobbled, leading to 40 WARRIOR POINTS IN THE PAINT!!
Nope,the refs won the game for the Warriors, in the first quarter of an NBA game. You dudes are right out of a comic book. Good luck with all that.
@StumpTownStu
Really wasn’t my intention to argue with you over this. As I finished my post I wrote that this was purely *my* thoughts on officiating in the NBA. That 22 to 31 number I threw out there was just a hypothetical to drive home my point and wasn’t meant to be in relation to game 2. I agree with your point that the *likely* reason the Celtics did not win game 2 was because the amount of turnovers they committed but to downplay the influence of the officiating is delusional.
You make mention of the “Celtics being a team that foul A LOT.” What’s that even mean? Fouls a lot in comparison to what? Do you have any data to even remotely back this claim? “All teams known for playing "physical defense" foul a lot.” Again any data to back this or we are just supposed to take your word on this? “And the officials have repeatedly swallowed their whistles on many of those fouls, all postseason long. All three previous rounds. In many of those games, when the Celtics have hacked repeatedly, they still ended up with the free throw advantage.” Again data?! The Heat series was the only series in which the C’s had a FT advantage. “The Warriors have never been a team that has been given the benefit of the referees whistle.” Again data or a source for this claim.
You’re talking a lot but really not saying much.
@jmrodrig
No, I'm saying a lot. And using actual basketball Xs and Os and statistical data rather than anecdotes and conjecture.
I'll say it one more time. The Celtics lost the game because they lost the turnover battle, which you absolutely can not do to the Warriors, and they lost the Time Lord, which led to them giving up 40 points in the paint. Three point shooting was dead even. The Warriors had 16 more points in the paint. Three point shooting was dead even but the Warriors shot 8% better overall. The Warriors only turned the ball over 12 times. That's wonderful for them, as turnovers are historically the Achilles heals of their offense. They aren't losing many games when they turnover the ball less than 15 times. And no team is winning many games when they turn over the ball 19 times.
Points in the paint, turnover differential, this is all basketball 101 but I get it. Dudes these days would rather focus on fairytales about refs altering the flow of games, even when very basic actual basketball factors are smacking them right in the face. The fact that dudes are talking about refs when a team commits 19 turnovers, talking about refs when a team allows 40 points in the paint... Well, it says a lot about dudes now days.
@ayoforyayo
Celtics are the better team as you will soon find out.
And, what led you to this conclusion when the C’s are one quarter away from being down 0-2. I would really love to hear your astute take on this most absurd comment??? Thanks in advance.
@StumpTownStu
[Quote: Originally Posted by StumpTownStu]@jmrodrig If you think the Celtics only committed 22 fouls and the Warriors committed 31 then you have lost your mind. Let's get one thing straight. The Celtics foul A LOT.
I am confused by what you meant here? They seemed well coached defensively this year as far as discipline from fouling. I do not think they were anywhere near the leaders. In fact, I think they fouled way less then GS did.
Or did you mean just this game? I think they were about even? Or you thought they SHOULD have had more fouls?
Maybe I misunderstood your point on the fouls?
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