Brian Scalabrine walks back his big accusation against Erik Spoelstra
Nov 30, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra reacts during a break as they take on the Boston Celtics at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Boston Celtics analyst Brian Scalabrine delivered a controversial take after the team’s win over the Miami Heat on Sunday, but the former fan favorite appears to have changed his stance a bit.
The Celtics defeated the Heat 114-94 in Game 1 of the first-round playoff series between the two teams at TD Garden in Boston, Mass. With roughly a minute left in the fourth quarter, Heat forward Caleb Martin slammed into Celtics star Jayson Tatum while Martin was charging into the lane for a rebound. Many felt the play was dirty. You can see the video here.
Scalabrine, who played for the Celtics from 2005-2010 and won a championship with the team, said during the NBC Sports Boston postgame show that it was “shady” how Heat coach Erik Spoelstra called a timeout 30 seconds before Martin’s hard foul on Tatum. Scalabrine believes Spoelstra ordered some sort of “code red,” which was Scalabrine’s way of saying Spoelstra told the Heat to go after Tatum.
On Monday, Scalabrine joined the Miami-based “Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz” to further explain himself. While he did not completely back down from accusing Spoelstra of putting a hit out on Tatum, Scalabrine said he believes Spoelstra told the Heat to “send a message” since they were getting blown out.
“Do you think that during that timeout, or during any timeout by the way, that Erik Spoelstra says, ‘Come on, guys. We’re down by 32. We’re just gonna lay down and get punked? We’re not gonna send a message?'” Scalabrine asked. “I’m not saying he said go run over to Tatum and hurt him. I’m saying, ‘Come on, guys, we’re gonna send a message to these guys. We’re in a long series right here. This is what we’re gonna do.'”
Scalabrine said anyone who does not think Spoelstra told the Heat to “send a message” does not really buy into Miami’s self-proclaimed identity of being the toughest and grittiest team in the NBA.
“I’m not saying that he said go run over Tatum and hurt him, I think he said to send a message…If you think that was not said, then I don’t think you guys buy in to Heat Culture…”
– Brian Scalabrine (@Scalabrine) stands on his “code red” remarks from Heat vs Celtics.
— Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (@LeBatardShow) April 22, 2024
There is a big difference between a coach telling his team to be aggressive and not go down without a fight versus instructing a player to injure an opponent. Scalabrine was basically trying to say the former was all he meant, but it was clear he initially accused Spoelstra of more.
