The still-surging Celtics are expected to be without their starting center in Robert Williams for their first-round series against the Nets, and Bruce Brown thinks that will be a crucial aspect to the upcoming battle.
“We can't let [Jayson] Tatum get 50,” Brown said after Brooklyn held off the Cavaliers in Tuesday’s play-in game. “We've got to be physical with them. Now they don't have Robert Williams, so they have less of a presence in the paint. We can attack Al Horford and [Daniel] Theis. So them not having Robert Williams is huge.”
Kevin Durant followed Brown at the podium after the game, and clearly didn’t like Brown’s remarks.
“What did Bruce Brown say when he got up here?” Durant asked reporters before being given the recap. “That's caffeine pride talking. Them two dudes can do the same stuff. It ain’t gonna be that easy, I can tell you that.”
It certainly won’t be a cakewalk for the Nets, who are shorthanded themselves and struggled to hold on against a shorthanded Cleveland team at the Barclays Center on Tuesday, even on a night where Kyrie Irving knocked down his first 11 shots. The Nets know their potential at full strength, but they know Boston’s potential as well, and Durant doesn’t want his group overlooking them in any way.
“We respect our opponent,” Durant said. “We don’t need to talk about what we’re gonna do to them. I just don’t like that. But that’s just how Bruce is. He keeps the same energy throughout the whole season. You don't need to say s--t like that. Let's just go out there and hoop.”
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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