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While TD Garden may have been empty on Friday night, Tacko Fall’s late-game performance still managed to bring the house down.
With a minute remaining in regulation, and the Boston Celtics holding a seismic 25-point lead over the Orlando Magic on Friday night, the 7-foot-5-inch Senegal center found himself uncovered at the three-point line.
As the classic mantra goes, shooters gonna shoot.
Fall pulled up from the three-point line (ultimately ruled a two-pointer), banking in the jumper and sending the Celtics bench into an all-out frenzy.
A few possessions later, Fall flaunted even more of his expanding game, taking Orlando’s Khem Birch off the dribble, flushing home a two-handed slam.
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Jaylen Brown: ‘Y’all better Stop Playing With Tacko’
Undermanned of late due to a COVID outbreak, the Celtics have called upon Fall to man a larger role over the past two games. During that span, the big-man has responded to the tune of 12 total rebounds, four total blocks and an impressive field goal percentage of 83.3%.
Fall’s growth from year-one to year-two has jumped off the screen, looking more fluid and under control this season. Will he prove to be a key contributor down the stretch? That’s still to be seen. Either way, Jaylen Brown believes it’s time everyone starts putting some respect on his teammate’s name.
“Man,” Jaylen Brown rejoiced during NBC Sports Boston’s postgame broadcast. “Y’all gotta give Tacko his f****** respect. Y’all better stop playing with Tacko.”
“Ya’ll seen the work, c’mon, Tacko been in the gym with me, the best,” Brown said playfully. “I’ve been training him.”
Brown proceeded to pull back on his fun-loving self-gloating, yielding praise on both Fall and the Celtics’ coaching staff for the center’s development.
“You got to give the credit to (assistant coach) Jay Larranaga. They’ve been doing a good job and Tacko has definitely made the most of every opportunity he’s had,” Brown said. “It was good to see him come out and score some easy baskets.”
Coach Stevens Praises Tacko
Brown, who finished the night with a game-high 21 points, wasn’t the only one to laud the Larranaga-Fall connection.
“I’m sure Jay [Larranaga] has rewound Tacko’s jump shot 58 times already, and watched it with great joy,” coach Stevens said. “They work together and he spent a lot of time in the gym with him.”
“I think that everybody loves what [Fall] brings to the table as far as a teammate, as a worker, as a guy,” he proclaimed. “He spends a lot of time on his skill. I think they were more excited about the ball handling at the top of the key and then the drive. But that’s a good thing, and being back in the gym and being together and smiling is a good thing.”
“And we’re not full. You know, we’ve gotten five guys that weren’t at the game tonight,” Stevens added. “Basically, they’ve said if you’re not playing there’s no need to come, so even Kemba was told not to come tonight but it’ll be more fun when we’re full, but that was a good moment for Tacko.”
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