Boston Celtics Return To NBA Finals: When It Begins, What To Expect

BOSTON — Twelve years after the Boston Celtics walked off the Staples Center court in Los Angeles as purple confetti fell and dreams of a second title in three years were dashed, the next generation of talent in the most storied franchise in NBA history will play for a championship once again Thursday night.

That's when the Celtics — coming off a tense, often frustrating and ultimately victorious seven-game Eastern Conference finals against the Miami Heat — will travel to San Francisco for Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

"It's hard to win in this league — especially in the playoffs," Celtics guard Jaylen Brown said in his postgame news conference following Sunday night's Game 7 victory in Miami. "On any given night, things can go differently. But a good team is able to respond. A good team is able to put their best foot forward each and every night.

"There were a couple of games that we felt got away from us. Instead of carrying it like baggage, we wore it like a badge of experience. We're war-tested. We've been through a lot. We've learned a lot over the years. And now the stage is at its brightest."

Nobody on the Celtics has been through more battles on the court and has more experience than Al Horford. The 15-year NBA veteran, who turns 36 years old on Friday, is making his first career NBA Finals appearance in his second stint with the Celtics after signing with the team as a celebrated free agent in 2016, and being reacquired in an offseason trade with Oklahoma City last summer.

"Winning is hard," Horford said. "We've talked about this throughout the year. Even though we've played many years in the league, this team, this is us going through this process, figuring it out, understanding how to win with this team, with this group.

"It's experience after experience. These are battle-tested teams that we've been playing. And we continue to grow."

One way Celtic fans in New England can prepare for the NBA Finals is to take a nap on the afternoon of each game. All games begin shortly after 9 p.m. EDT, with the exception of the 8 p.m. Sunday night starts.

Here is the NBA Finals schedule:

Game 1 — Boston at Golden State, Thursday, June 2, 9 p.m.

Game 2 — Boston at Golden State, Sunday, June 5, 8 p.m.

Game 3 — Golden State at Boston, Wednesday, June 8, 9 p.m.

Game 4 — Golden State at Boston, Friday, June 10, 9 p.m.

Game 5 (if necessary) — Boston at Golden State, Monday, June 13, 9 p.m.

Game 6 (if necessary) — Golden State at Boston, Thursday, June 16, 9 p.m.

Game 7 (if necessary) — Boston at Golden State, Sunday, June 19, 8 p.m.

Boston fans looking to catch a night of NBA Finals history live at TD Garden had better be prepared to pony up some serious cash as well.

Tickets for Game 3 on the secondary market at Ace Ticket as of Tuesday morning were starting at about $750 for balcony seats, with loge tickets starting at $1,190 each and courtside seats running as high as $16,500 each.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)