As expected, Kelly Oubre received an unwanted welcome from the hostile crowd inside TD Garden on Wednesday night.
Following the vicious shove he gave Kelly Olynyk in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference Semifinals series, the 21-year-old Kansas product was suspended by the league. However, what he had to prepare for as well was how the Boston faithful will treat him in Game 5. Many were surprised that even before he entered the match, the fans already chanted his name to try to distract and take him out of his game.
Markieff Morris was asked after the game how he felt about the crowd taunting Oubre, and he admitted, via Kevin Duffy of Mass Live, that it was something he anticipated and could not do anything about.
“It's Boston, man. You've got to be prepared for anything. That's how I look at it.”
Bradley Beal echoed his teammate's sentiment and added that Olynyk may receive the same treatment in Game 6 inside Verizon Center.
“It is what it is, man. It is what it is. They're trying to make it bigger than what it needs to be. We're playing basketball here. They're going to protect (Kelly) Olynyk here. We're going to protect Oubre on our team. When he comes to D.C., Friday's going to be the same thing. We booed him. It's just part of the game. We don't pay attention to that.”
The Wizards All-Star point guard,John Wall, gave a lot of credit to Oubre for handling the situation well and acting like a true professional. He also said they treat each other as brothers and that they are always there for him.
“They're going to do what they're going to do. I think Kelly did a great job of handling it. He didn't let it bother him. He kept playing basketball. We told him what to expect from the crowd. We didn't think those types of words, but all we've got to do is play basketball. We're his brothers. We stick behind him.”
With their backs against the wall, the Wizards are expected to play with a lot of desperation and nothing short of their best will be needed to pull off a win on Friday.
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