Caleb Martin responds to critics after laborious foul on Jayson Tatum at first seemed on NBC Sports activities Boston
Recreation 1 of the Boston Celtics’ first-round playoff collection towards the Miami Warmth on Sunday was once moderately uneventful … till the overall minute.
That is when Warmth ahead Caleb Martin collided with Jayson Tatum whilst the Celtics megastar was once within the air making an attempt to clutch a rebound, sending Tatum to the TD Lawn ground with a troublesome thud and inflicting Jaylen Brown to in an instant confront Martin.
Tatum have shyed away from harm and downplayed the laborious foul after the sport, however NBC Sports activities Boston’s Brian Scalabrine was once amongst those that seen Martin’s movements as “grimy,” particularly bearing in mind the Warmth have been down by means of double digits on the time en path to a 114-94 loss.
Martin insisted after Sunday’s sport he had no malicious intent and doubled down on that stance Tuesday.
“I imply, anyone who is aware of me, I do not really feel the desire to check out to take out guys so as to beat any individual,” Martin instructed journalists at Miami’s follow, by way of CLNS Media’s Bobby Manning. “The very first thing I did was once flip round and test if (Tatum) was once OK. If I used to be looking to take any individual out, I’d have simply saved strolling away. And that’s the reason simply no longer who I’m.
“That is the playoffs; laborious fouls occur at all times. If the jobs have been switched, I don’t believe anyone would were calling it a ‘code pink.’ It simply came about.”
Scalabrine reasonably jokingly puzzled Sunday on Celtics Pregame Reside whether or not Warmth trainer Erik Spoelstra had ordered a “code pink” to his gamers to ship some form of message to the Celtics that they would not pass quietly into the evening. Scalabrine’s feedback it sounds as if made their technique to Martin, who defended his movements by means of suggesting Celtics guard Jrue Vacation driven him into Tatum.
“If anyone watches it, I obviously were given driven into him,” Martin mentioned. “I used to be going for a putback dunk and the frenzy modified my trajectory. These things simply occurs. Guys are enjoying complete pace and issues occur, so I would by no means attempt to harm any individual.”
When requested if he was once “stunned” concerning the consideration his foul on Tatum has garnered, the fifth-year ahead took the prime street.
“I wasn’t too stunned, in truth,” Martin spoke back. “It is that point of yr the place issues get amplified and everyone likes to check out to have a say in one thing. It is simply that point of yr.
“The rest that is achieved flawed or laborious fouls occur to positive other folks, they are gonna be made out to be like you might be looking to take guys out and stuff like that. So, that is simply what comes with this time of yr.”
The NBA reportedly is not anticipated to self-discipline Martin for his foul on Tatum, however this storyline most probably may not pass away. Whilst the Celtics are the heavy favorites within the collection, the Warmth play a bodily logo of basketball that might result in extra worrying moments going ahead, particularly now that the C’s are on edge after a troublesome foul on their megastar participant.
Recreation 2 in Miami is about for Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET, with Mike Gorman and Scalabrine calling the sport broadcast for NBC Sports activities Boston and pregame protection starting at 6 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Reside.