Chances are the majority of NBA fans were surprised to see the Miami Heat earn a gentleman’s sweep over the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
The Bucks, who were without superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo for two games in the best-of-seven, were massive favorites entering the series after the Heat needed to battle through the NBA Play-In Tournament.
Jayson Tatum and members of the Boston Celtics, however, were not as surprised. Boston battled Miami countless times during the regular season and knows just how much talent remains on the Heat roster. It’s why the Atlanta Hawks beating Miami in the initial play-in game was such a positive development for the Celtics, well, at least at the time.
“I wouldn’t necessarily call it an upset,” Tatum told reporters Thursday before the Celtics faced the Hawks in Game 6 of their own best-of-seven series, per MassLive’s Brian Robb. “Miami is a really good team, they have a great coach and obviously they got some great players and they made plays. I guess people weren’t expecting them to win but I wouldn’t call it an upset.”
Jimmy Butler was among those who put on a great performance. With Antetokounmpo hindered by injury, Butler clearly was the best player in the matchup. He went nuclear to the tune of 37.6 points on 60% from the field in the five games.
“Just some high-level basketball, some great individual performances, some great team performances,” Tatum told reporters. “Obviously, I guess it was a 1-8 seed but it was two really good teams with some great players and great coaches. Just some good basketball to watch from both sides.”
Marcus Smart shared similar sentiments.
“I wasn’t too surprised,” Smart told reporters Thursday, per Robb. “The Heat is a dangerous team. We all know the Heat play different in the playoffs, and they played the Bucks really well. I’m not as surprised as probably others, but I am surprised they went down the way that they went down. That just goes to show you that it’s the playoffs. Anything can happen. You gotta be ready at all times.”
Now it will be up to the Celtics to be ready themselves. Boston will take the court at State Farm Arena on Thursday night, and a Game 6 victory will both eliminate the Hawks and send the Celtics to the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Philadelphia 76ers.
