The Boston Celtics entered Friday’s Game 3 match-up against the Chicago Bulls with their backs against the wall as a result of an 0-2 deficit in the first round series. With Brad Stevens’ team facing the scorn associated with crumbling as a No. 1 seed, there was also the subplot with Isaiah Thomas and the unfortunate and tragic passing of his sister prior to Game 1.
With that as the backdrop, the Celtics made a few changes on the floor that worked to perfection, including an emphasis on “small ball” from the opening tip. That, in conjunction with the absence of Rajon Rondo, resulted in a comfortable 104-87 victory. Following the game, though, Celtics guard Avery Bradley indicated that the Celtics had even another source of inspiration prior to tip-off, as he was asked by ESPN’s Adam Schefter about the energy of Thomas and how that affected Boston’s performance.
In short, Bradley referenced pregame words from former Celtics great Kevin Garnett, who came to the fold through Thomas himself:
IT4 played an inspirational clip from KG before Game 3. It worked.#Celtics https://t.co/sN4bMGNEQp
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) April 22, 2017
“Isaiah played a clip from KG before the game, and it kind of got us going a little bit. KG said some inspirational words for us, and it reminded us that as Celtics, we’re always supposed to be the hardest playing team every single night. And we’re supposed to use Isaiah’s family… use that as inspiration and come out and play hard for him and his family. That’s what he did tonight.”
Garnett is, of course, a beloved figure in Boston after helping lead the Celtics to the 2008 NBA title, and this is the type of stuff that can quickly turn into folklore. Bradley was careful not to go too deep into specifics from the always entertaining Garnett, but it was clear that the message of hard work was on everyone’s mind throughout the game.
The Celtics shot the ball exceptionally well (46 percent from three) and received improved efforts from players like Al Horford (18 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals) and Bradley himself (15 points, 7 assists, 7 rebounds), but it’s safe to assume that Garnett’s potential influence won’t exactly be understated before the pivotal Game 4 arrives.
