Getty Malcolm Brogdon, Jayson Tatum and Al Horford of the Boston Celtics react against the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers find themselves amid a highly competitive back-and-forth second-round affair. With things all tied up at 2-2, it’s evident that this series has a real shot of going the distance. Because of this, Malcolm Brogdon believes the shamrocks must play with a bit more urgency.
During a game-day shootaround interview, the league’s Sixth Man of the Year discussed Boston’s mindset heading into Game 5 and noted that the club views their upcoming contest as a must-win affair.
“It’s a desperation mindset for us tonight. We have to have this one,” Malcolm Brogdon said.
Malcolm Brogdon on Game 5: “It’s a desperation mindset for us tonight. We have to have this one.”
Despite his plea for the Celtics to play with a sense of desperation, Malcolm Brogdon went on to state during the interview that while “there is anger about losing games that we feel like we should have won” ultimately the team is “gonna stay encouraged regardless.”
Through four games played in their semifinal matchup against the Sixers, the point guard has continued to serve as a tremendous asset for the club off the bench, as he’s sporting averages of 19.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.3 assists while shooting 46.4% from the field and 53.3% from deep.
Marcus Smart Defends Jaylen Brown After Game 4 Loss
JAMES HARDEN GAME WINNER.
Though there were many factors that aided in Sunday’s Game 4 loss for the Celtics, it is Jaylen Brown‘s late-game defensive decision-making that seems to be drawing a considerable amount of pointed fingers.
At around the 20-second mark in overtime, the two-time All-Star opted to step away from his assignment in James Harden, who was out on the right corner, to help Jayson Tatum in defending a backing-down Joel Embiid.
The decision proved to be a grueling one, as Brown’s help defense gifted Harden ample space to splash home a catch-and-shoot go-ahead triple that, ultimately, gave the Sixers the 116-115 win.
Despite the backlash the wing is receiving, 2022 Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart stated post-game that he doesn’t believe the read was necessarily the wrong one to have made.
“It’s complicated. They do a good job of putting guys in certain situations. And it is a read. JB made a read. They made a better read. And that’s just all it is,” Smart said. “I’m always living with JB making a read [on] what he feels comfortable with in his gut. He’s been doing great all series. This time, they made a better red, and we paid for it.”
The Celtics will have a chance to take back the series lead in front of their home crowd at TD Garden during Tuesday’s Game 5.
ESPN Analyst Blasts Celtics for Last Possession of Game 4
Following their Game 4 demise, Mike Greenberg of ESPN went on to make the bold claim of suggesting that the Boston Celtics were unaware of the situation they were in during the final seconds of overtime.
With the Sixers leading by one point, the C’s had 19 seconds to draw up a play to try and secure win number three of the series and head back to Boston with an opportunity to punch their ticket to the Eastern Conference Finals.
They questionably opted to go for a drive-and-kick from Jayson Tatum to Marcus Smart for a long-range attempt. Ultimately, the plan failed and Greenberg seems to believe the only reason behind Joe Mazzulla’s play call was due to the fact that he believed the game was tied.
“We’ll never know because they’ll never admit it,” Greenberg said. “I think the Celtics thought the game was tied at the end of overtime yesterday. They played that possession like they thought the game was tied. They played to try and get a shot off with half a second on the clock, and they ended up doing it half a second too late. They played with no urgency. They played that possession the way you would play a possession if the game is tied.”
MARCUS SMART NEARLY CALLED GAME.
WHAT AN ENDING 😱
Marcus Smart’s attempt did, in fact, wind up falling, but after officials reviewed the play it was revealed that the ball was still in his possession after the game clock had struck zero.