The Celtics were unable to make history on Monday night, losing Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals in embarrassing fashion.
Boston did a marvelous job of evening up the series after going down 3-0 to Miami. And yet, all of the Celtics’ hard work was erased by their brutal performance at home in Game 7.
Shortly after the Celtics lost to the Heat in Game 7, Charles Barkley ripped the home team’s performance.
“They play bad basketball,” Barkley said. “They’re so undisciplined and un-fundamentally sound. They win games strictly on talent. They don’t even run an offense. That’s what disappointed me the most.”
Barkley: “They’re so undisciplined and un-fundamentally sound. They win games strictly on talent. They don’t even run an offense.”
Shaq: “When they went 0-10 to start the game…0-12, that should have told them, ‘hey settle it down. Let’s get the pacing game back in our favor.'” pic.twitter.com/1dHUBgPDEf
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 30, 2023
Barkley’s colleague, Shaquille O’Neal, was also critical of the Celtics.
“When they went 0-10 to start the game…0-12, that should have told them, ‘Hey settle it down. Let’s get the pacing game back in our favor,'” O’Neal said.
Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum struggled to get anything going on offense. They had 33 combined points in the most important game of the season.
After failing to reach the NBA Finals, the Celtics will some soul-searching to do this offseason.