2023-11-29 16:18:31
Celtics Tatu (middle) holds the ball against Bulls Drummond. (Associated Press)
The Celtics defeated the Bulls 124-97 in the mid-season championship. With 7 minutes left in the final quarter, the Celtics directed guard Jrue Holiday to intentionally foul Chicago’s Andre Drummond consecutively, sending him to the basket. The free throw line, also known as the “hack tactic”, aroused the anger of Bulls head coach Billy Donovan, because at that time the Celtics were already leading by 29 points!
There is a reason for this lack of sportsmanship. Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla explained to Donofan on the sidelines that in Group C of the Eastern Conference group stage, they had 3 wins and 1 loss with the Magic and Nets. They need to beat the Bulls and get more points to advance (need to win by more than 23 points).
Drummond’s rebounding and defense were very good, which put a lot of pressure on the Celtics, but his career free throw shooting percentage was only 47.7%. Halladay intentionally fouled him. As expected, Drummon missed 4 consecutive free throws. Made 1 of 6 free throws in a single quarter. The Bulls replaced Drumone with 6 minutes remaining, and he never returned to the court. The Celtics got their wish, winning by 27 points and qualifying first in Group C.
Celtics guard Jaylen Brown, who scored 30 points, said: “Our ultimate goal is to come out and win the game every night, but this situation is a little unusual. This is not the way we usually play. We have to respect our opponent.” The Celtics beat their opponent by 23 points, making this game a bit weird. Bulls head coach Donofan said that he can sympathize with the Celtics. The source of the problem lies in the league’s establishment of this winning point system.
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