Why Stephen A. Smith Believes Gordon Hayward ‘Disrupted’ Celtics’ Season

Who deserves most of the blame for the Boston Celtics falling to the brink of elimination from the NBA playoffs?

It’s a question that’s being debated ad nauseam in the wake of Boston’s Game 4 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, and Kyrie Irving seems to be the most common recipient of criticism after posting another lackluster performance Monday night at TD Garden.

But Stephen A. Smith refused to limit his finger-pointing Tuesday. While he’s disappointed with Irving’s recent postseason play, Smith believes Gordon Hayward actually “disrupted” the Celtics’ entire season by joining Boston’s starting lineup too soon following his gruesome injury.

Smith explained on ESPN’s “First Take” why Celtics coach Brad Stevens and president of basketball operations Danny Ainge need to be held accountable for putting Hayward in a position to negatively impact Boston’s chances of meeting its full potential.

The Celtics, of course, came within one win of the NBA Finals last season without Irving and Hayward, in large part because Boston’s young players — namely Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier — stepped up and seized their increased opportunities. It’s been a shaky 2018-19 campaign with Irving and Hayward back in the mix, though, and Smith even noticed recently that Tatum and Brown, in particular, looked miserable in the Celtics’ locker room toward the end of the regular season.

This will be an interesting summer for the Celtics, as Irving can opt out of his contract and become a free agent. And it all could begin as soon as Wednesday night, as the Bucks will look to close out the Celtics in Game 5 in Milwaukee.