There may be some sneaky bad blood in Celtics-Warriors series

BOSTON — The Warriors have built up a dynasty in Golden State, and they’ve managed to do it without making too many enemies.

While a player like Draymond Green is constantly ruffling feathers, that is largely offset by the eminently likeable Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson on the court, along with Steve Kerr on the bench. They made it to five straight Finals from 2015-19, winning three of them, with America largely enjoying the show.

But if any team might have managed to develop a little bit of bad blood with the Warriors, it just may be the Boston Celtics.

Two incidents in recent memory stand out in that regard.

Most recently, Marcus Smart found himself on the receiving end of a stern talking-to from Kerr after making a bit of a reckless dive for a loose ball — a standard high-effort play from Smart which resulted in an injury to Curry.

Curry ended up missing the final 12 games of the regular season after sustaining a knee injury from that play. Curry was a bench player for the first four playoff games against Denver, as he worked to regain strength and conditioning.

“I thought it was a dangerous play,” Kerr said after the game. “I thought Marcus dove into Steph’s knee, and that’s what I was upset about. A lot of respect for Marcus, he’s a hell of a player. Gamer, competitor, I coached him in the World Cup a few summers ago. We talked after the game, we’re good, but I thought it was a dangerous play, and I let him know.”  

Another incident involving the two teams goes a lot farther back, with this one taking place in March 2017, during Jaylen Brown’s rookie season. At the end of the third quarter (of an eventual Celtics win), Curry sent Brown into the air with an up-fake. Once Brown cleared the area, Curry put up a 3-ball and sunk it … before turning to Brown and taunting him with a point and some words.

Again, Curry has become a worldwide superstar over the past decade, to the point where he’s almost universally beloved. Brown also has no reputation of being a trash-talker, especially when he was a rookie in the league. So that moment back then still stands out today, and it can’t be on that Brown has forgotten.

How or if any of this history manifests itself in the upcoming Finals is anyone’s guess. It may end up playing no role at all. But with the championship on the line, if things get chippy in a hurry once the series tips off, we at least know that it won’t be popping up out of nowhere.