Celtics Player Trolls ESPN Analysts After Boston Wins NBA Title

The Celtics heard the naysayers, and they hung onto receipts.

Boston relished the opportunity to stick it to its doubters after winning the NBA championship Monday night. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown were particularly eager to clap back at the people who counted them out, and even the typically mild-mannered Brad Stevens joined the party after the Celtics secured Banner 18.

Some of the negativity toward Boston came from ESPN’s “First Take” panel, all of whom incorrectly predicted the outcome of the Finals. Stephen A. Smith, Udonis Haslem and Andraya Carter all picked the Mavericks to win in six games or more, while Molly Qerim projected Boston to come out on top in six.

In the end, the C’s only needed five contests to dispatch Dallas. And the day after Boston reached basketball’s mountaintop, Oshae Brissett had some fun on social media at the expense of the aforementioned analysts.

“Game 6 soon gotta lock in,” Brissett posted to X on Tuesday afternoon.

Instead of preparing for another Finals game, the Celtics will spend a few days celebrating in Miami before returning to Boston for Friday’s championship parade. The party through the streets of Beantown will provide yet another opportunity for the C’s to dunk on the folks who didn’t believe in them.