“Celts have ruined my day” - Former world No. 13-ranked tennis player, Nick Kyrgios, raves with frustration after Celtics' Game 2 loss
The Boston Celtics suffered a shocking 118-94 blowout Game 2 second-round playoff home loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday. Their letdown performance frustrated many Celtics fans, including Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios.
Boston, the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed, entered the series as a massive favorite. Many predicted the Celtics to dispatch the fourth-seeded Cavaliers in four or five games. They appeared well on their way to a relatively easy series victory during Tuesday's 120-95 Game 1 home victory.
However, Cleveland flipped the script in Game 2. Led by star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell's game-high 29 points, seven rebounds and eight assists on 52.6% shooting, it dominated Boston at the TD Garden. The Cavaliers led by as many as 29 points, holding the Celtics to only 8-for-35 (22.9%) shooting from 3.
After the contest, Kyrgios, the former No. 13-ranked world singles tennis player, vented his frustration on X/Twitter. He highlighted Boston's tendency to get fans' hopes up with dominant performances only to let them down with lackluster effort the next game.
"Celts have ruined my day. This team is a roller coaster," Kyrgios said. "Just when you think they have it figured out, they throw a performance like this in."
The Celtics experienced a similar letdown during their five-game Round 1 series win over the Miami Heat. After a decisive 114-94 Game 1 home win, they unexpectedly dropped Game 2 111-101 on their home floor.
However, they responded with three straight wins by 14-plus points to eliminate the Heat. It remains to be seen if Boston will respond similarly in Round 2.
Jayson Tatum reacts to fan criticism following Celtics' Game 2 loss to Cavaliers
After winning an NBA-high 64 games this season, Boston faces immense pressure to live up to championship expectations. However, according to Celtics superstar forward Jayson Tatum, fans should stop treating the Celtics like a superteam and overreacting to each of their losses.
After Thursday's Game 2 loss to Cleveland, Tatum highlighted how his squad doesn't expect its second-round series to be a cakewalk.
"The world thinks we're never supposed to lose, we're supposed to win every game by 25 [points], and it's just not going to be like that all the time," Tatum said. "So, we don't expect it to be easy. It's a good team we're playing. It's the second round of the playoffs."
He added that while the Celtics had a highly successful season, they weren't respected like a superteam, so they should be afforded off nights.
"We didn't have the Coach of the Year, we didn't have MVP, we only had two All-Stars," Tatum said. "So, you say we're a superteam, but we didn't get rewarded like we are."
Tatum and Boston will look to bounce back and regain home-court advantage during Saturday's Game 3 face-off in Cleveland.