Jaylen Brown wasn't the only Celtics player who shot down a report about Boston on Tuesday.
Prior to Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals, Marcus Smart was asked to address a new rumor about his former head coach, Ime Udoka. After the Celtics fell into a 3-0 series hole against the Miami Heat, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski filed a report claiming the C's "never got over" the departure of Udoka, who led them to the 2022 NBA Finals in his first and only season at the helm in Boston.
The rumor apparently has no merit, as Smart shot it down before tipoff Tuesday night at Kaseya Center.
"No. No. Regardless of if Ime was here or not, we’re the ones out there playing," Smart told reporters, per Sports Illustrated. "We gotta go out there and play. Joe (Mazzulla) does a great job of putting us in the right positions. They come up with a game plan. It’s on us. There's only so much any coach can do for you out there as a player. At some point, you gotta look at yourself and figure it out."
The Celtics did figure it out in Game 4, as they displayed marked improvements on both ends of the floor in a 116-99 win over the Heat. The season-saving victory also featured a very solid coaching showcase from Mazzulla, who some thought completely lost the locker room after Boston lost three straight to Miami.
Boston on Tuesday proved it's not going to go down without a fight, but it will need to keep improving its attack if it wants the series to prolong.
