Tristan Thompson was interviewed after the Celtics won 125-119 over the Nets in an intense Game 3. Thompson was amped up and riding the energy after Boston’s big statement win. “I can’t f***ing wait till Sunday. 17K. Green. I’m gonna see the Leprechaun. That’s what it’s all about.”
Thompson was asked about his big night and how he rose to the occasion in the pivotal win.
“I mean the playoffs is a different story. I did it today. Some guys are built for the regular season, some guys are built for the first half of the season, and then some guys live for those moments in the playoffs, and you know my whole career what I do on the court it’s high energy and it’s at a higher magnitude. And it’s more important obviously on a winning team, but obviously in the playoffs because those energy plays, whether it’s offensive rebound or a putback dunk or a hustle play that changes the momentum and that kind of gets the whole group going and that energy kind of sparks. It’s contagious, so that’s what playoff basketball is about. So that’s that’s my calling card”
On how the team approached the must-win game, Thompson said “I know this from my experience is that game three and especially with a team down 0-2, you got to treat it like a Game 7. You gotta throw the first punch. Of course yeah they were scoring in the first five minutes, but you can see our level of physicality and it starts with myself and Smart. We’re the guys that you like to get nasty, we’re the bulldogs so we gotta go ahead and do that because that separates ourselves from others in this league and we’ve been doing that a long time that’s why teams appreciate us…so we gotta do it again game four and especially with our fans in the building. That’s what they’re going to want to see and that’s what Boston represents. Boston represents people who are blue collar, punch their clock and don’t take sh** from nobody. So, our effort is going to represent them.”
