Marcus Smart said Celtics teammates Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown “don’t want to pass the ball.”
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN:
Reporting for NBA Countdown on the Celtics holding a players-only meeting in Orlando – and how there remains a lot of work to be done among franchise’s key players. pic.twitter.com/1fQ7VmDsdC
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 3, 2021
When Boston traveled yesterday to Orlando, I’m told, they had a players-only meeting. And Marcus Smart, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, they did talk about the collapse against the Bulls and Marcus Smart’s comments after the game about those two not passing the ball. I’m told it was emotional at times, but in the end, perhaps, not a terribly productive meeting, maybe not even beneficial.
The Celtics beat the Magic, 92-79, tonight. But that might say more about Orlando struggling than Boston (3-5) suddenly coming together.
Locker-room tension is a longstanding issue for the Celtics. Brown and Smart have particularly bickered.
If the players can’t solve these problems themselves, it falls on Boston coach Ime Udoka to find solutions. That can be challenging for a first-time head coach.
