Not one uniformed member of the Boston Celtics had played in an NBA Finals game before Game 1 on Thursday night. Much was made of this, partly because of the vast Finals experience of the Golden State Warriors but mostly because storylines at this stage must be truffle hunted until no soil is unturned.
There has to be something to this experience thing, right? The lights are brighter, the stakes are higher and the Warriors' core is in its sixth Finals in the past eight years, attempting to win their fourth. The question was asked, in just about every form possible, and the Celtics players responded by shrugging and repeating some versions of "basketball is basketball.