BOSTON — If you can’t beat ’em, beat ’em up.
That seemed to be the Celtics’ strategy Thursday night, as they turned Game 3 of their first-round NBA playoff series into a street brawl in an effort to slow down LeBron James and the high-powered Cleveland Cavaliers offense.
“If we come out and punch them in the face, we’ll have a chance to win the game,” Celtics guard Avery Bradley said. “That has to be our mindset from the beginning of the game: come out playing hard.”
Although the Celtics did not win the game, falling 103-95, the shift in philosophy was evident early after forward Jared Sullinger knocked two Cavs to the TD Garden parquet with hard fouls in the first quarter. But the intensity didn’t truly ratchet up until Jae Crowder checked into the game.
Ever since arriving in Boston as (the only remaining) part of the Rajon Rondo trade, Crowder has been a different breed.
He earned rave reviews from coach Brad Stevens after just his second game in green. It was a true first impression — Stevens said this week that he couldn’t have watched more than five clips of Crowder’s play before the trade.
A few weeks later, the forward was preaching the virtues of accountability, among both his teammates and the coach staff. He did so again last month after a “sickening” loss to the Miami Heat in the midst of Boston’s playoff push.
Yes, Crowder will talk. He’s not shy. Just this week, he garnered headlines by saying that while he respects the Cavs, they do not intimidate him. But Crowder also can never be accused of asking more from his teammates than he does from himself.
Thursday night was the perfect example. Crowder played like his distinctive dreadlocks were on fire against the Cavaliers, finishing with 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting, with seven rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks while setting the physical tone for a game that felt like a throwback to the early 1990s.
Then, there were the little things. Crowder took three charges, initiated two jump balls, forced James and Kevin Love into turnovers, and seemed to take over the game for brief stretches — no easy feat against guys like James and Kyrie Irving.
There was this minute-and-a-half span in the second quarter:
And this one, which came during the thick of Boston’s ultimately unsuccessful fourth-quarter comeback:
“The bottom line is, Jae’s not scared,” Stevens said after the game. “He’s not scared. He’s not going to play — he’s not going to play in a way that he’s going to back down from anybody, which I really appreciate about him. He plays really hard, he is a very good defender, he’s a very versatile defender, and he made huge shots and made huge plays at the rim for us. He’s been a great addition. Just a great addition. It’s been fun to coach him.”
Unfortunately for the Celtics, the Cavaliers proved they were not scared, either. After a second quarter that featured two technical fouls and a second half in which the Celtics battled back from eight- and 11-point deficits, the same problem remained: Boston simply had no answer for Cleveland’s firepower.
“I think they started to try to take advantage of what the refs weren’t calling,” Cavs guard J.R. Smith, who picked up the first tech during a scuffle following a hard foul on Irving, told ESPN.com. “I guess they just figured we just a prima donna team. That’s why I’m here. I’m here to show them this is not going to go down the way you think it’s going to go down.”
Thumbnail photo via Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports Images
