Magic Johnson called out the Celtics for giving up in Game 3

After two losses in their own building, the Celtics went on the road to Miami needing a Game 3 win on Sunday night to have a shot at the Eastern Conference Finals against the Heat.

Instead of showing up with the desperation they needed, they turned in their worst performance of the postseason, getting ejected from the building in a 128-102 loss. It was as daunting a game as you’ll see from a team in a must-win environment, as their stars never got going, no one else was able to step up to consistently make shots, and their defensive effort It still leaves a lot to be desired. .

Things completely got away from Boston in the third quarter, when Miami took a 15-point halftime lead and doubled it thanks to a drive on both ends that included Jimmy Butler trolled the Celtics mocking Al Horford’s Game 1 timeout taunt. By the fourth quarter, the starters had been downed 30 and were left to try and figure out what went wrong on the bench. Many people called out the Celtics for quitting, including Stan Van Gundy on the broadcast, but Boston’s performance was so bad that even one of their biggest rivals, Magic Johnson, was disgusted by what he saw, saying fans should be furious. and saying major changes should be on the horizon.

There’s something very funny about the Magic being so disappointed in a Celtics team, considering you’d expect him to revel in seeing the franchise he went toe-to-toe with so many times in the dumps. Instead, he’s frustrated as if the fans are seeing that Boston isn’t being presented as a game he must win. The Magic’s Lakers are in the same 3-0 hole as the Celtics, but they were at least competitive in Game 3 until Nikola Jokic and Denver led the game off in the fourth quarter. Boston seemed much closer to a “1-2-3 Cancun!” moment in Game 3, and they’re so down that their fans feel sorry for Magic.