Dubs ‘punking’ Celtics inspired rallying cry from Udoka originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
The Boston Celtics weren’t going down without a fight, and Ime Udoka’s message to the team heading into the fourth quarter provided the spark they needed.
Eventually going on to beat the Warriors 120-108 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals at Chase Center on Thursday night, it was Udoka’s pump-up speech that played a role in Boston erasing a 12-point Golden State lead and delivering the Warriors their first playoff loss at home.
Udoka told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports what his message to the team was entering the final quarter.
“You’re getting punked out there,” Udoka told Yahoo Sports. “They’re punking us right now. Is this the way you want to go out? This is not us. Let’s at least give ourselves a chance.
“If we’re going to go out, let’s go out playing the way we play. That’s all I was asking,” Udoka told Yahoo Sports. “I’m happy the guys responded.”
The speech clearly resonated with the team given the outcome and Celtics players believe it was the kick in the pants they needed at just the right time.
“For anyone, I feel like that challenges us to step up and stop being so soft, you would say,” forward Grant Williams told Yahoo Sports. “He’s not afraid to say that to anybody. He was yelling at me, [Jaylen Brown] and whoever was in the game while we were running down the court, telling us to toughen the hell up. That’s what you love about Ime. He tells it like it is.”
“It’s something we needed to hear,” Derrick White said. “We were challenged to toughen up and we did.”
RELATED: Draymond believes he ‘failed’ Steph with Game 1 performance
More often than not, when Golden State leads by 12 points entering the fourth quarter, it usually ends in a victory. Unfortunately for the Dubs, the Celtics put together a historic comeback effort that left the Warriors stunned.
The Warriors would be wise to punk the Celtics for all four quarters in Game 2.
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