Magic coach doesn’t care about Celtics’ physicality complaints

ORLANDO — The Celtics haven’t been happy with what they’ve viewed as over-the-top physicality from the Magic in their first-round playoff series.

Orlando couldn’t care less — and doesn’t plan on changing its approach.

“I don’t think much of it,” Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley said before Game 4 on Sunday. “I really just focus on our team and how we can continue to play and do the things that we need to do to do the things that we need to do to be successful.”

The Magic were called for a flagrant foul in each of the first three games of the best-of-seven series, and all three resulted in injuries to Celtics players. The first knocked Jayson Tatum out for Game 2 with a bone bruise in his wrist. The second left Kristaps Porzingis with a gash on his forehead. Jaylen Brown dislocated his index finger on his non-shooting hand on the third, which occurred during Friday night’s 95-93 Celtics loss.

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“There might be a fight break out or something, because it’s starting to feel like it’s not even basketball,” Brown said after that game.

Mosley, whose team committed the fifth-most fouls in the NBA during the regular season, was asked whether he views those complaints as a compliment.

“I don’t know if it’s necessarily a compliment,” he replied. “I think it’s just us playing Orlando Magic basketball, and we’ve had that since we’ve been here. So at the end of the day, it’s just us being who we are. We own that, and we accept it, and that’s just who we’re going to be.”

Magic players echoed their coach.

“We don’t play a non-contact game,” guard Cole Anthony, who committed the flagrant foul on Brown in Game 3, told reporters Sunday morning, via SI.com. “We play a physical game. This is a contact sport. You’ve got to be ready to get touched.”

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