NBA Finals | Resilient Celtics join resurgent Warriors in summit clash

Boston Celtics beat Miami Heat 100-96 in Game Seven of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals and will now face champions of the Western Conference, Golden State Warriors, in the NBA Finals series starting June 1

Somewhere, Gregg Popovich must be pleased. Ime Udoka and Steve Kerr played for Popovich with the San Antonio Spurs, both served as assistant coaches under him, and neither makes any effort to hide the affinity they have for the NBA’s career victory leader.

And now, Udoka and Kerr are about to go head-to-head — in the NBA Finals.

The title matchup is set: It’ll be Udoka and the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics facing Kerr and the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors, a series that begins Thursday night in San Francisco. The teams split their two regular-season meetings, each winning on the other’s home floor.

The Warriors have been waiting for an opponent since this past Thursday after needing only five games to beat Dallas for the West title. The Celtics got there the hard way, winning Game 7 in Miami on Sunday night to capture the East.

“We stayed with it. We believed in each other. We made a commitment on the defensive end," said Celtics forward Al Horford, who, after 141 playoff games, is headed to the NBA Finals for the first time. “That was the biggest thing, defending."

For the Celtics, it’s a chance at an 18th NBA championship — which would break the tie with the Los Angeles Lakers for the most in league history. For the Warriors, it’s a chance at a seventh crown — which would break a tie with the Chicago Bulls for third-most in league history.

It’s also a rematch of the 1964 finals, when Bill Russell and the Celtics topped the Warriors in five games.