Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla took full responsibility for their latest defeat as Jaylen Brown described it as ‘embarrassing’.
The second seeded team needed to bounce back in a major way after losing the opening two games of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals at home. But by halftime of Game Three, the Miami Heat had opened up a 15-point lead and hammered home their advantage in the third quarter. The C’s shot just 39.8% from the field and for a team that relies heavily on three-point shooting, they made just 26.2% of their shots from behind the arc, compared to Miami's 54.3%.
The Heat went on to win 128-102 to stand one game away from the NBA Finals and at one point were 33 points ahead. Brown, who managed just 12 points, was crestfallen after the nightmare result that leaves the Celtics at the point of no return. "I don't even know where to start," he said. "It's an obvious letdown. I feel like we let our fan base, organization down. We let ourselves down. And it was collective. We can point fingers, but in reality, it was just embarrassing."
Mazzulla is the youngest head coach in the NBA and shouldered the blame, claiming he did not have his side ‘ready to play’.
"I think the most important thing is just sticking together, and then I have to be better," he said post-game. "I've got to put them in better positions. I've got to get them ready to play. I have to have the game plan ready for us to be physical and to execute, and it's important that we stick together."
Following his 50-point performance in Game Seven against the Philadelphia 76ers in the semi-finals, many expected Jayson Tatum to keep playing at an MVP-calibre level. But he managed just 14 points, 10 rebounds, and two assists after shooting six of 18 from the field and has been ineffective in the fourth quarter of the last two games.
In his post-game press conference, Tatum issued a strong message for his teammates as they stare down the barrel of a crushing series defeat when they take to the court for Game Four on Tuesday night.
He added: “I think just, as tough as it is, as tonight was, we've just got to try to move on. Prepare, get ready, practice, film, and stuff for tomorrow. Obviously, we're in a tough position, but we've just got to have some pride, bounce back, and just be better come Tuesday."
Miami's Gabe Vincent scored a playoff career-high of 29 points to lead his side to another excellent win. When asked about the one-sided result, he said: "I don't know if surprised is the word. We played well tonight. We defended. We made shots. We forced them into turnovers.
"The next game, the mentality is to come out and compete at a high level, defend, try to make the right read every time offensively, and just play good basketball. It's the first to four games. We are not satisfied with three."
