The Boston Celtics took it to the Miami Heat, winning the game 114-94. However, things took a turn late in the contest after Caleb Martin delivered a hard foul on Jayson Tatum. A little skirmish took place between Jaylen Brown and Martin, adding some drama to this Eastern Conference series.
Tatum was going up for a rebound when Martin came out of nowhere and basically hip-checked the Celtics star mid-air. Jayson Tatum hit the floor hard but was able to get back on his feet and shoot free throws.
But before Tatum could shoot his free throws, Jaylen Brown stepped in and got into it with Caleb Martin. The Celtics were not too pleased with Martin's actions. Boxing out is a normal play but it looked like the Heat forward launched his body into Tatum's mid-air.
Playoff basketball tends to be a bit more physical than the regular season. Jayson Tatum got a taste of it on that play. But Celtics coach Joe Mazulla seemed more excited than anything else when Tatum took the hard hit, per team beat reporter Daniel Donabedian. Overall, Mazulla wanted to see how Tatum was going to react to the foul.
“Joe Mazzulla was eager to see how Jayson Tatum would respond to Caleb Martin's foul. ‘I was waiting to see what he was gonna do. I was kind of excited about the whole situation. So I just I enjoyed watching it.'”
It's safe to say Tatum handled it with class. It looked as though he had some choice words for Martin but the Celtics star didn't go over the top. Instead, he remained calm and shot his free throws. Considering Boston was up big, there was no real reason to overreact. At the very least the skirmish between the Celtics and Heat may have spawned from Caleb Martin's frustration with the game.
Can the Celtics get over the hump?
The Celtics haven't won a championship since 2008 and hope to finally get over the hump this season. Boston finished the regular season with the best record in the NBA and are poised for a deep playoff run. Many believe they're the clear-cut favorites to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals.
Being a top seed is nothing new to Jayson Tatum and the Celtics though. For whatever reason they just haven't put everything together to win a championship. But the acquisition of Kristaps Porzingis seems to be paying off big time. Derrick White's emergence has also largely benefited Boston as well.
The postseason is a long journey and it can be a grind. But as long as the Celtics remain healthy they should be able to make plenty of noise in the playoffs. They are massive favorites to eliminate the Heat in the first round so we should expect Boston to stay the course and do everything they can to make the second round in as few games as possible.
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