In October of 1974, Muhammad Ali and George Foreman engaged in one of boxings most legendary matches. The Rumble in the Jungle was a brutal match where Foreman thew every ounce of his terrifying power at Ali for the better part of eight rounds.
But in the eighth round, as Foreman’s punches slowed, the power draining from effort of trying to chop this mountain down with his hands, Ali leaned in and said, “is that all you got?”
Foreman has told this story a million times. In his head, he answered “yeah!” and Ali buried him just before the round ended.
Winning a fight, especially against a beast like Foreman in his prime, isn’t always about expertly avoiding the blows, it’s about taking them and firing back. It’s not about how the fight looks, it’s about being the person standing when the bell rings.
The Celtics took a shot to the chin on Sunday afternoon. Their legs wobbled and everyone saw it. After the round one bell sounded, there were questions about how they’d handle the onslaught in round two.
Turns out they can throw a punch or two themselves.
“We were pissed off in how we played last game from top to bottom, and we knew that we just had to play better,” Jayson Tatum said after the 109-86 win. “Every aspect of the game, we just had to play better.”
The Celtics absorbed what the Bucks threw at them in Game 1 and fired back, even without Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart. They played more disciplined on both ends, and threw a flurry that sent the Bucks into the ropes.
They moved the ball to get better shots instead of settling. They sought out paths to the rim instead of just hanging around the perimeter. They defended Milwaukee’s role players and kept them from burying Boston under a barrage of 3-pointers.
They played Celtics basketball.
“Even in Game 1, we felt we were OK in the halfcourt but we were sloppy in turnovers and transition that we gave up kind of helped them,” Ime Udoka said. “Offensively I think it was us getting downhill and attacking a little bit more. The point is they have good rim protectors and they protect the paint, but it’s not Wilt Chamberlain out there. There’s guys we can get downhill and attack and we’ve got guys that can finish.”
That quote says a lot about why this team is able to respond the way they do. He simultaneously respects his opponent and jabs at them with things like the Wilt comment. They are taking on his personality and responding to shots like they took in Game 1 with a pat on the butt and a ‘nice one, now it’s my turn’ instead of rubbing their cheeks and asking ‘why’d you hit me like that?’
“Every game isn't gonna be perfect. We’re playing against the defending champs and they punched us in the mouth first game and we knew that,” Tatum said “I knew we were going to be ready tonight, from a competitiveness standpoint. And just making adjustments from game to game. I think that's what the playoffs are about.”
Even if people on the outside weren’t sure, Udoka expected this kind of response because this was the kind of response his team has given time and time again. Still, the chatter coming into this game was how much it would tell people about the makeup of this team.
Basically, what have you done for me lately, but asking the question every couple of weeks or so.
“We don’t really pay attention to most of the noise around us. We’re just kind of focusing on each other,” Grant Williams said. “This is one of the most competitive teams you play in the league … you’ve got to give them the respect they deserve, but we also know that we’re competitive and we’re doing the same.”
Udoka sent a message to his team early in the season to not respect their opponents too much. Don’t say ‘thank you sir, may I have another’ when they hit you with a good shot. Each punch they throw has to be met with one or two of your own. Two is better.
The Celtics threw those punches at the Bucks and it led to a 25-point lead. Milwaukee made their run but the lead never got below double digits after the first quarter. Boston was precise with their ball movement, adjusting to the Bucks and using Milwaukee’s defense against them. They generated almost as many 3-pointers as Game 1, but the quality of those shots was a lot better. They made Giannis Antetokounmpo have two full bad quarters in a row, which is often cause for celebration on its own.
Once again people questioned Boston’s resolve, and once again they answered the bell. This fight is nowhere near over, but Boston showed they belong in this one with the defending champs because of their ability take a big punch and throw one of their own.
“That was our first true test in the playoffs,” Brown said. “I know a lot of us were a little bit worried — not worried, but curious as to how we would come back in this position, because we hadn’t lost. … How you respond is everything. What you’re made of comes to light in those moments, so you got to see what the Celtics were about tonight. And I’m proud of our group, but we’ve got to get ready for the next one, because it’s going to be a dog fight, I expect nothing less. It should be fun.”