Getty Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum is defended by Duncan Robinson of the Miami Heat.
The Miami Heat will have the pleasure of taking on Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics, just days after the star forward set a Game 7 record, scoring 51 points to eliminate the Philadelphia 76ers.
Fresh off of his otherworldly performance, Tatum took some time to preview his team’s upcoming series with the Heat, showering Erik Spoelstra‘s squad with praise.
“A team we’re extremely familiar with,” Tatum said via the NBA’s official YouTube channel. “It’s our third time in four years, I think, playing them in the playoffs. And you know, they’re very well coached team. They compete with the best of them. They play hard. They defend. They make plays and they figure out a way to win games. It’s going to be fun and it’s going to be highly competitive. I’m looking forward to it. It’s the best time of year. We get to play them again. You know, it’s going to be fun and as a competitor you love the opportunity.”
It’s evident that Tatum has a tremendous amount of respect for the Heat. He and the C’s had to fight hard to get past Miami last season, winning the Eastern Conference Finals in seven games. Just two years prior, it was the Heat who made it past the Celtics in six games, earning their first NBA Finals berth since 2014.
Celtics’ Jaylen Brown Shows Respect for Heat
Tatum’s running-mate, Jaylen Brown, also spoke about the impending meeting with the Heat. He highlighted the various challenges of facing an experience team like Miami, when speaking to reporters on Sunday afternoon.
“Progressing against Miami, they propose different challenges as well,” Brown said via the CLNS Media Boston Sports Network YouTube channel. “We’ve just got to be versatile. We’ve got to have intensity and be aggressive and that’s got to be the tone setter for the whole series.”
Boston’s No. 7 was then prompted on last season’s series victory over the Heat, and if it gives his team any sort of mental edge heading into the rematch.
“Nothing about last year matters,” Brown responded. “I don’t think Miami is thinking about last year, they’re coming out ready to play basketball…We just gotta come out with a great fresh mind and execute what’s in front of us. I think that’s the key. I’m looking forward to it, I think it will be a great challenge, and it should be fun.”
ESPN Gives Heat Just 3% Chance to Advance Past Celtics
While both of Boston’s stars emphasized the challenge of getting past the Heat, not everyone believes that the series will be a competitive one.
For example, ESPN threw some heavy shade in Miami’s direction on Monday morning. The worldwide leader shared a tweet of a graphic, showing the Heat as having just a 3% chance to come out on top of the Celtics.
“The Miami Heat have a 3% chance of reaching the NBA Finals, according to ESPN Analytics,” the tweet read.
The Miami Heat have a 3% chance of reaching the NBA Finals, according to ESPN Analytics 😮
Though it’s fair to label the Heat as the underdog in this series, it’s a bit disrespectful to give them just a 3% chance to make the NBA Finals.
Entering the playoffs as the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference, Miami has taken down both the No. 1 seeded Milwaukee Bucks, and the No. 4 seeded New York Knicks. They were pinned as underdogs in both series, yet still found a way to advance.
Their first opportunity to prove the doubters wrong will come in Wednesday’s Game 1, which will tip off at 8:30 p.m. at TD Garden.
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