Tatum wants Celtics to bring this kind of mindset into Game 5 vs. Heat originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The Boston Celtics played like a desperate team Monday night in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Miami Heat.
Facing the possibility of going down 3-1 in the series, the Celtics jumped all over the Heat early, outscoring them 18-1 to start and 29-11 at the end of the first quarter. The Celtics cruised to a 102-82 win at TD Garden to even the series at two wins apiece.
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How do the Celtics bring that same level of urgency to Miami for Game 5 on Wednesday night?
"It's kind of like a new series, best of three," Celtics star Jayson Tatum said in his postgame press conference Monday night. "I think just having a conversation that I think human nature plays a part in, when you win a game, you can relax a little bit. But obviously, when we lose a game, we feel like the next game is do or die, and then we come out and play like we did and things like that.
"I think we have to have that mindset going into Game 5 that it is a must-win game, because tonight was essentially something like that. Everybody knew it. We could all feel it. And I think that showed in the way we came out."
Going into Game 5 with the mentality that it's a must-win situation is a great idea. Unlike the second-round series against the Milwaukee Bucks, the Celtics won't have the luxury of playing Game 7 at home if it comes to that. Miami has homecourt advantage in two of the final three games of the conference finals.
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The Celtics are capable of winning on the road in a Game 7. They have won five of their seven road games in the 2022 playoffs so far. But it's a scenario Boston should try to avoid. Beating the Heat in six games not only makes a Game 7 unnecessary, it would give players such as Marcus Smart and Robert Williams additional time to treat their injuries before the NBA Finals begin June 2.
The Celtics are a better team than the Heat, especially when they don't beat themselves with silly turnovers. They didn't even shoot well (39.7 percent) in Game 4 and still won by 20.
The key on Wednesday night is playing like the desperate team for a second consecutive game. If the Celtics do that, they'll likely return to Boston with a chance to become conference champions Friday night.
