The Boston Celtics took care of business on Sunday with a 114-94 victory in Game 1 of their first-round series against the Miami Heat. It was anything but a routine win for the No. 1 seed Celtics, though, with the Heat putting up a formidable challenge despite not having the services of star player Jimmy Butler.
Of course, there were a number of heated moments during the contest, including one that saw Jayson Tatum hit the deck hard late in the fourth quarter.
Boston Celtics News: Jayson Tatum a Victim of Miami’s ‘Dirty Play’?
The game was already out of hand for Miami with a little more than a minute remaining in the fourth and final frame. It was at that point that Caleb Martin shoved Tatum mid-air, which led to a hard fall for the Celtics superstar.
According to ex-Celtics player Brian Scalabrine, this was an intentionally “dirty play” from Martin and the Heat:
“Erik Spoelstra called a timeout with a 1:30 down by 16, 30 seconds later that play happens… that looked shady to me… That to me is a dirty play… I think Martin should get suspended for that,” Scalabrine said on the broadcast.
"Erik Spoelstra called a timeout with a 1:30 left down by 16, 30 seconds later that play happens… that looked shady to me."
Brian Scalabrine reacts to Caleb Martin's foul on Jayson Tatum pic.twitter.com/XRchYpbOVh
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) April 21, 2024
It’s no surprise that Jaylen Brown confronted Martin after the play, which led to a heated moment between the two teams in the dying moments of the game. Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed and the game carried on without much incident.
Jayson Tatum Speaks Out
After the game, Tatum was asked by reporters to talk about the incident. Apparently, the five-time All-Star didn’t mind the foul at all:
“It’s a physical game, playing against a physical team, sh*t’s going to happen,” Tatum said. “It’s not the last time my body will get hit like that or fouled in this series. I wasn’t hurt.”
Jayson Tatum on jumping right back up following Caleb Martin's hard foul in Game 1 of Celtics-Heat:
"It's a physical game, playing against a physical team, sh*t's going to happen. It's not the last time my body will get hit like that or fouled in this series. I wasn't hurt."… https://t.co/RVlWofhNdb pic.twitter.com/Z9cX9VRqMr
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) April 21, 2024
Kudos to Tatum for getting right back up after hitting the deck and not making a whole meal out of the foul. As he said, he wasn’t hurt. Nevertheless, there’s no denying that this could have been far worse for Tatum and the Celtics.
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