Celtics' trio of Brown, Tatum, Smart match NBA Finals history in Game 3
BOSTON -- The Celtics got big performances from just about everyone who stepped on the court for their Game 3 win over the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. But Boston got huge games out of the three stars atop the roster -- Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart -- who matched some NBA Finals history in the process.
Brown was the biggest beast in Game 3 with 27 points, nine rebounds, and five assists in Boston's 116-100 win. Tatum added 26 points to go with nine assists and six rebounds, while Smart had 24 points, seven rebounds, and five assists for the victorious Celtics.
That's a whole lot of production from those three. The last time that a trio of teammates all posted at least 20-5-5 in an NBA Finals game was back in 1984 when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, and Michael Cooper accomplished the feat for the L.A. Lakers -- against the Celtics. (Boston won the series in seven games.)
This is the third time that a Celtics triumvirate has had such a night in the Finals. John Havlicek, Bill Russell, and Larry Siegfried did it for the 1968 Finals, and Russell, Havlicek, and Sam Jones did it in the 1966 Finals. The Celtics won both of those series, also over the Lakers.
Of course, none of Boston's current trio were alive when any of those games happened. But now they sit alongside some big Celtics and Lakers stars in the NBA Finals record book.
Perhaps there is a new "Big 3" on the rise in Boston.
