Gortat Should Take Avery Bradley More Seriously

Avery Bradley had some choice words for Marcin Gortat, and he backed them up in a way that no one saw coming

Avery Bradley has been a soft spoken player for his entire career. He is the perfect example of someone who lets his play on the court do the talking for him, and he let his results speak for themselves. Bradley has earned the respect and the praise of some of the league’s best players, but for the first time in his career none of that was enough.

The Boston Celtics and the Washington Wizards have been playing the most tense games in the playoffs, and the bad blood has been real for the entire season. Everyone knows that these teams have disliked each other, and the extra curricular talk has been going on all season long, dating back to the all black dress code for the so called funeral game.

These playoffs, Bradley had enough. The last player you would ever expect to speak up to the media, Bradley came out earlier and demanded the respect that he has earned. Bradley has always been a leader and veteran of this team, but that has not been because of what he says publicly.

When Bradley demands respect it is because he means it, and after a minor encounter with Marcin Gortat, everyone has been put on notice by Bradley. When Gortat came out and mentioned what Bradley said to him during a game, it was understandably hard to take serious.

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Gortat revealed that Bradley, one of the quietest players in the league, said this to him in the middle of a game “Avery Bradley approached me last game and said that if I set one more screen, he’s going to beat me up” (Via NESN). Gortat dismissed Bradley’s threat, pushing it aside as an attempt at a provocation.

Boy, could Gortat not have been more wrong. Bradley himself confirmed he sent that message to Gortat, and then in game five he sent a message to the rest of the league that he needs to be taken seriously.

Obviously, Bradley did not literally beat up Gortat, it would be ridiculous to expect that in any capacity. Instead, Bradley punished the Wizards and Gortat in a much more painful way. Bradley put together a career performance, and is the player most responsible for putting the Wizards on the brink of elimination. Instead of crushing the body of Gortat, Bradley crushed the spirit of a team who could not get into the game, and are now facing elimination.

Bradley has always let his game speak for itself, so it is no surprise that he followed up these comments like this. Bradley has proven that he can destroy games for the Wizards, and he is having the kind of two way impact that is near impossible to find in the NBA.

Bradley is the most important defender in a series against John Wall and Bradley Beal, and in game five he was also the most important offensive player. Gortat thought that Bradley was just trying to provoke the Wizards, but Bradley has only ever been concerned with what his team is doing, and everything came together around him in game five

Gortat probably still suffered the most humiliating moment. Bradley has often been criticized as a player who cannot finish off the dribble. Amidst his great run, Bradley had the “hear check” of the game when he dribbled down Gortat and nailed the shot right in his face.

Gortat thought that the Celtics were overly concerned with getting a reaction out of the Wizards, but they should have been paying more attention. This is a Celtics team that does not need any of those extra curriculars to get motivated. This is a core of players that has always believed in each other, and Bradley finally had enough. Talk will only take you so far, and Bradley brought the play that can intimidate even the scariest of looking seven footers.

Bradley showed his toughness on the court, and now the Wizards are going to be searching for answers, praying that Bradley does not have another game like he did in game five.

All the talk this series has been about the chirping and the dirty play for the Celtics. the pettiness hit an all time high, but Bradley made it clear that he needs to be listened to when he speaks up.

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The Celtics got the performance they needed out of everyone, and they put together their best game of the season. It will be a whole other world going back to Washington in game six, but you better believe that the Wizards will not make the mistake of dismissing anything about Bradley ever again.

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