Boston Broadcaster Makes Wild Claim That Heat Coach Ordered “Code Red” to Injure Celtics Players

Players exchange words after Caleb Martin of the Miami Heat collided with Jayson Tatum in the fourth quarter of a first-round playoff matchup at TD Garden on April 21, 2024. Photo by Winslow Townson/Getty Images 

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The outmanned, out-talented, and overmatched Miami Heat brought no drama on the scoreboard against the Boston Celtics in their first-round playoff series, but that didn’t stop the talking heads in Boston from stirring up a little drama off the court.

In Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Playoffs’ first round, the Heat faced off against the Boston Celtics, falling 114-94 in a game that was even more of a blowout than the final score indicates. The Heat struggled to find a three-point shooting rhythm and contain the Celtics ‘ aggressive play, and they floundered without their star, Jimmy Butler, who is sidelined due to an MCL knee injury sustained in the Play-In Tournament against the Chicago Bulls.

Unless the eighth-seeded Heat turn the tide quickly, no amount of Heat Culture will save them against the top-seed Celtics this time. The Heat’s prospects looked grim from the get-go, even more so now that we’ve seen the two teams square off once. Boston crushed Miami, establishing a 15-point lead by halftime and extending it to 22 points as the game entered the fourth quarter.

The game was about as unmemorable as they come until the very end. But then there was the end, which definitely will have people talking this week in the lead-up to Game 2.

The most buzzed-about moment in Game 1 took place with about a minute left on the clock. Miami’s Caleb Martin went up for a rebound and collided with Boston’s Jayson Tatum. Martin buckled under Tatum, causing both to lose balance and crash hard onto the court.

This incident sparked immediate tension on the floor, but cooler heads prevailed. The same can’t be said for how the Celtics home broadcast reacted to the tension.

During the postgame telecast, former Celtics player and current NBC Boston broadcaster Brian Scalabrine suggested that Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra might have used a timeout to direct his players to specifically target Tatum, a claim that was described on the broadcast as ordering a “Code Red.”

The remark spread on social media, leading to a flurry of reactions, with many dismissing it as absurd and unfounded. Scalabrine’s allusion to such a dramatic directive was seen as particularly outlandish, given Spoelstra’s respected reputation and standing as a potential Hall of Fame coach. The idea that Spoelstra would instigate an intentional act to injure an opposing player is absurd; throughout his career, Spoelstra has never been recognized as a dirty coach or given any indication he would put out “a hit” on an opposing player.

Suggesting Spoelstra would stoop to such lows is hilarious, but what’s even funnier is that after the game, multiple people have pointed out an alternate angle of the play that shows Celtics point guard Jrue Holiday pushing Martin into Tatum.