Heading into the first round match-up between the Celtics and the Heat, there was an understanding that the talent gap between the rosters meant the only way the Celtics would lose is if the Heat out-toughed the Celtics.
For several years now, the Celtics have faced criticism for being the softer team – with last year’s Eastern Conference Finals loss being prime fodder for those critiques. Most recently, in February, after a loss to the Lakers, Charles Barkley said the Celtics weren’t “mentally tough” and therefore, couldn’t win a championship. That declaration came in the midst of a singular loss during what was a historically-dominant Celtics season — but was one this Celtics core has faced time and again.
But what is toughness?
Jayson Tatum grappled with the question in his postgame presser after the Celtics eliminated the Heat in five games.
“The world we live in, there’s going to be something wrong with every team,” Tatum said. “That’s what they like to say. And you can see how talented we are and I think it’s lazy, or easy to say, that teams can ‘out-tough’ us. I’ve never understood that.”
Jayson Tatum with some illuminating words on the concept of ‘toughness’:
“It’s easy to say teams can out-tough us. I never understood what’s the definition of tough? Having louder guys on your team? That shit don’t make you tough. Everybody has their own definition.” pic.twitter.com/PTIXTABIdI
— Noa Dalzell (@NoaDalzellNBA) May 2, 2024
From a talent standpoint, a Celtics roster headlined by Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis and Derrick White far overpowers Miami’s. Sure, Tyler Herro, Bam Adebayo, and Caleb Martin have been there before, but young, unproven players like Nikola Jovic and Jaime Jaquez Jr. were playing substantial minutes with Jimmy Butler and Terry Rozier both missing the series with injuries.
After a Game 2 loss to Miami, the Celtics could have panicked and dropped a subsequent game to the Heat. Instead, they blew out the Heat for three consecutive games, a response for the ages.
It’s not the first time this core has responded with their backs against the wall – in 2022, down 3-2 against the Bucks, Jayson Tatum famously put the team on his back with a 46-point performance. Last season, after falling 3-2 to the Philadelphia 76ers, he hit a late-game barrage of three-pointers in Game 6 and exploded for 51 points in Game 7. And sure, falling down 3-0 to the Heat in the conference finals was a low of the Tatum-Brown era – but the response to force a Game 7? Tough, even if they didn’t ultimately get the job done.
“What’s the definition of tough?” Tatum asked at the podium after the 118-84 defeat of Miami. “Having the louder guys on your team? Like that s#!% don’t make you tough. Everybody has their own definition of what toughness is. Playing the right way, showing up every day to do your job without complaining. I think that’s being tough.”
Critiques of the Celtics toughness — and of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in particular — won’t end because of a first-round series win. They likely won’t end unless the Celtics win the NBA Finals. But extinguishing the team that has eliminated them in two of the past five seasons is a good first step.
It’s not the first time Tatum has touched on notion of “loudness.”
“I’m not going to be out there jumping up and down screaming,” Tatum said back in September. “That’s just not my personality. As much as people want to talk about it and want me to be that, I’m not changing who I am. I lead in my own way.”
If the Celtics can secure twelve more wins, critics will want to revisit his poignant comments on the definition of toughness.
