Sometimes there’s too much happening to fit into the Morning Dump.
It’s not exactly breaking news that the Celtics and Wizards hate each other. We were warned. And last night, everyone put their cards on the table.
"We don't like them & they don't like us." -Isaiah Thomas pic.twitter.com/8ZVudbZy95
— NBA TV (@NBATV) May 5, 2017
It’s been a long time since two NBA teams truly had the level of disdain the Wizards and Celtics have for each other right now. What Thomas said would usually be bulletin board material, but if the Wizards were asked the same thing they would probably give similar answers. What Thomas is saying is just the honest truth.
CBS Sports – Isaiah Thomas, Gerald Green pull no punches with how they feel about Wizards
OK, let’s ask the Wizards.
John Wall shrugs while trying to explain the feud between the #WizCeltics: "I guess, just two teams that really don't like each other." pic.twitter.com/rj9DXILDrt
— WizardsXTRA (@WizardsXTRA) May 5, 2017
Yup, they hate each other. And that’s the mindset that turns a hard pick into a fight.
Kelly Olynyk with a hard screen on Kelly Oubre who gets up and goes after Olynyk. pic.twitter.com/71411ZiTJP
— RealGM (@RealGM) May 5, 2017
Olynyk was called for a foul because he was moving, not because he took Oubre’s head off. If it had been the latter, Olynyk would’ve probably been given a flagrant foul. He wasn’t. Now Oubre will likely be suspended for Game 4, because 1) he also clipped the ref, and 2) the NBA has to send a message that everyone needs to cut the crap.
And that includes Terry Rozier, who foolishly allowed himself to be lured into confrontations with the irritating Brandon Jennings (who has as many technical fouls in the series as he does made baskets – two apiece).
During the fourth quarter, a steady back-and-forth between Rozier and Jennings emerged as a subplot. The two guards spent a lot of time annoying each other; later, Jae Crowder said teammates warned Rozier that Jennings would try to rattle him.
“We’ve been telling him since Game 1 when he had that shoe incident: he’s going to do stuff like that to get under his skin,” Crowder said. “And he just has to do a better job of holding his composure. He knows it. Just hopefully we can move on from it. And that’s just really what Brandon does, and we have to have a more level head on our side to move forward.”
MassLive – Isaiah Thomas: Boston Celtics, Washington Wizards don’t like each other
Let’s not let the refs off the hook, either. They failed to call a foul on this basket and didn’t intervene quickly enough to prevent a skirmish. Less than two minutes later, the mayhem escalated with the KO vs. KO confrontation.
https://twitter.com/SInow/status/860294134392901633
What can we expect on Sunday?
Gerald Green has only one thing in mind for the teams' next game. pic.twitter.com/uC16oUCsqu
— ESPN (@espn) May 5, 2017
I hope Gerald simply means the Celtics are going to outscore Washington by a lot. Because everyone has already had their chances for stare-downs and throw-downs. Now it’s time to play.
As Isaiah put it earlier this season:
I always say, ‘Keep it hoop.’ When it comes to basketball, I talk about basketball and I’m going to trash talk and I’m going to compete, I’m going to do whatever I can to make my team win a game.
Win the game. Sounds good.
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