After being dominant all season long, finishing with the best record in the NBA, the Boston Celtics marched into the second round of the playoffs. However, suffering a 94-118 blowout loss in Game 2 of their series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, came as a shock to the team and its fans. Nick Kyrgios voiced his disappointment with the team on X.
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Following the one-sided affair, Kyrgios took aim at the Celtics’ awful shooting display – 41.2% FG and 22.9% 3FG, per NBA.com – coupled with the Cs’ inability to clinch wins at home.
“Putrid shooting performance. Ridiculous how the Celtics never take advantage of home court.”
Putrid shooting performance. Ridiculous how the Celtics never take advantage of home court.
— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) May 10, 2024
Further, the loss resulted in the best-of-7-game series being tied at 1 game apiece. Nick Kyrgios also said that the Celtics “ruined his day”. The 2022 Wimbledon finalist dejectedly wrote:
“Celts have ruined my day. This team is a roller coaster. Just when you think they have it figured out, they throw a performance like this in.”
Celts have ruined my day. This team is a roller coaster. Just when you think they have it figured out, they throw a performance like this in.
— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) May 10, 2024
While there were a majority of basketball enthusiasts who sympathized with Kyrgios, a certain group of tennis fans trolled him. These social media users cleverly claimed that just as how Kyrgios felt after the Celtics’ poor showing, they feel the same way when the Australian plays tennis because of being so mercurial.
It’s like watching you play tennis. Same feeling
— Teo (@Teoo_Gimenez) May 10, 2024
They are the Nick Kyrgios of basketball
— Rend Quamfy⭕️ (@DoubleBagel10s) May 10, 2024
They are just like you I swear.
— Lefa (@Lefa_makoro) May 10, 2024
These fans aren’t completely inaccurate in criticizing Kyrgios for his performance on the ATP Tour. The Aussie has been one of the most entertaining and ‘maverick’ players on the Tour but has only managed to win a total of 7 titles in almost 12 years.
Many pundits believe that the lanky star could at least win an ATP Masters 1000 title if not a Grand Slam. But, just like he spoke about the Celtics, Kyrgios fails to capitalize on the momentum he gains and ‘ruins’ his fans’ days.
Why does Nick Kyrgios support the Boston Celtics?
Those actively following Nick Kyrgios are aware that he is a huge NBA buff. Apart from donning the jerseys of different NBA players, the Canberra native has publicly expressed his love for the Boston Celtics on numerous occasions.
It is worth noting that Kyrgios doesn’t have any history with the Celtics organization nor has he ever been to Boston. So, why does he support the team?
The answer is quite simple – Kyrgios found the Celtics logo ‘cool’.
In an article for The Players’ Tribune, Nick revealed how his love for the team originated because of the video game – NBA Live.
“My love for the Boston Celtics came from video games. Back in 2006, when I was 11 years old, I got my first NBA Live game… I was just starting to travel a lot for tennis all over Australia, and I needed a way to pass the time between tournaments.
“So when I got NBA Live I started flipping through all the teams trying to decide who to play with, and I ended up picking the Boston Celtics.
“I thought the logo looked cool,” Kyrgios detailed.
It’ll be great to see the Boston Celtics surprise their lifelong fan with some tickets for their upcoming encounters at the TD Garden.
