Udonis Haslem responds to Jayson Tatum’s jab at Miami Heat
“He’s gotta still be tipsy from the party, there’s no way he could believe that."
Former Heat forward Udonis Haslem responded to Jayson Tatum’s joke about the Celtics-Heat rivalry.
The Celtics flew to Miami hours after they beat the Mavericks to secure the championship.
During the lead-up to the championship parade, NBC Sports Boston’s Brian Scalabrine asked Tatum if the trip was sweeter than previous ones the Celtics had made to play the Heat.
“They always easy,” Tatum said.
Haslem responded to Tatum during a pair of TV appearances on ESPN.
“I think he’s still drunk from the party,” Haslem said during a recent episode of SportsCenter. “He’s gotta still be tipsy from the party, there’s no way he could believe that. It’s OK, that’s what he’s supposed to say. Congratulations to the Boston Celtics. I ain’t gonna be no hater, we understand they’re the champs. We’re going to get fully healthy, then we’ll see what happens.”
The Celtics and Heat have faced off in four of the last five playoffs, including three of the last four Eastern Conference Finals. The Celtics beat the Heat in five games during the opening round en route to the NBA championship this postseason.
“I’m tired of this,” Haslem said during an appearance on First Take. “Duncan Robinson, Terry Rozier, Jimmy Butler, a young superstar in Bam Adebayo, a young superstar in Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Nikola Jovic. Why don’t nobody ever say the Miami Heat? The last four or five years, it’s come down to the Miami Heat or the Boston Celtics. Milwaukee snuck themselves in there, but it’s come down to the Miami Heat or the Boston Celtics. And we’ve got La Spoelstra Nostra (coach Erik Spoelstra).
“So I’m sitting here asking, why don’t nobody ever say the Miami Heat? A healthy Miami Heat is the team that can challenge Boston, because we’ve done it the last four out of five years. I’m sick of this, man. This gotta stop. The Heat hate gotta stop.”
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