The Boston Celtics went up 3-1 on Monday after a convincing 102-88 victory over the Miami Heat in Game 4. Boston’s big win, however, was mired by a potentially serious injury to Kristaps Porzingis, who was seen in a walking boot after the game.
It wasn’t just Porzingis who had an injury scare in Game 4, though. Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum also suffered a knock after a flagrant foul on Bam Adebayo — an incident that has now emerged as one of the most controversial moments in the contest.
Tatum injured his foot after landing on Adebayo on a 3-point attempt. What makes this even more polarizing is the fact that it all went down after the referee had already called a foul on Miami guard Patty Mills:
sedjngnerjtgnjert pic.twitter.com/jLoZZI9o3Z
— Don Barzini (@DonBarziniXX) April 30, 2024
Even the broadcast team couldn’t agree on whether or not Adebayo should have contested Tatum’s shot in the first place. Either way, the challenge saw the Celtics talisman hitting the deck and writhing in pain.
After the loss, Adebayo was asked to shed light on the incident in question, which resulted in a Flagrant 1 for the Heat forward/center. The three-time All-Star was at a loss for words and opted not to address the situation:
"I don't even know. We just gonna move on from that, you gonna get me fined."
Bam Adebayo on the late foul in Game 4 involving him and Jayson Tatum and getting hit with a flagrant 1
(via @ZachWeinberger) https://t.co/3FE1CFJt1H pic.twitter.com/4v3UwvBH83
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) April 30, 2024
For his part, Tatum himself chose to play the incident down. The Celtics superstar, however, was vocal about his appreciation for teammate Al Horford having his back:
"I don't want to make it a bigger deal than what it is"
Jayson Tatum talks about the Bam Adebayo flagrant & Al Horford stepping up to defend him pic.twitter.com/N2bV1OpEhN
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) April 30, 2024
Horford was actually more upset about the incident than Tatum was. The veteran big man even shoved Adebayo out of the way as he came to check on Tatum:
Al Horford got a technical for that. These refs, man.
Shout-out to Al Horford! ️ pic.twitter.com/Vymk6Pqf8B
— Tomek Kordylewski (@Timi_093) April 30, 2024
After the game, Horford admitted that he was infuriated by what he deemed to be a dangerous play on the part of Adebayo:
"I was just mad… thankfully JT is fine, but it could've been bad"
Al Horford shares his reaction to Bam Adebayo's flagrant foul on Tatum pic.twitter.com/KSXQT0daB2
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) April 30, 2024
All this just adds another layer of controversy to an already compelling first-round matchup.
More must-reads:
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!