The Boston Celtics don't really need any more motivation at this point of the season. After all, they are just two victories away from defeating the Golden State Warriors in the 2022 NBA Finals and securing the franchise's 18th championship.
But if they're looking for any more fuel, perhaps some comments from Warriors forward Draymond Green after Golden State's Game 3 loss to the Celtics at TD Garden will give them some extra energy.
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Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports was witness to an exchange between New Orleans Pelicans guard CJ McCollum and Green after Wednesday's matchup. McCollum told Green he was going to go on television and pick the Celtics to win the series.
“I’ve got to tell you this. I picked Boston to win Game 3, I picked you guys to win Game 4. But ultimately, I’ve got the Celtics winning the Finals,” McCollum told Green, per Haynes. “I just want you to hear it from me first before you hear me say it on TV.”
Green's rebuttal should be plastered on some wall inside the Celtics' locker room for the remainder of the series.
“That’s fine. Those Celtics will still be ringless just like you. Respect.”
Boston Celtics
Green loves to talk trash and get under his opponents' skin. We saw that in Game 2 when he picked up a technical foul in the first quarter and nearly got another before halftime.
The veteran forward hurt the Warriors in Game 3 by giving one of the worst performances of his playoff career. Green scored just two points with four rebounds, three assists, two turnovers and six fouls in 35 minutes.
There's an enormous amount of pressure on Green to play at a high level the rest of this series, not only because the Warriors desperately need it, but he has to back up all of this trash talk with on-court production.