Celtics vs. Heat: Rondo's Fighting Words Will Cause Fatal Distraction for Boston

When Rajon Rondo called out the Heat for whining to the refs on Sunday, it was amusing. He was fired up, the Celtics were dominating and he was feeling cocky. There was nothing to worry about.  

But then the Celtics blew their lead, went into overtime and needed several lucky breaks to escape the TD Garden with a series tie instead of a 3-1 deficit.

The C's got off easy, but now they have targets on their backs. Now, as Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals looms and Chris Bosh gears up to rejoin a squad that seems all but assured of making a trip to the NBA Finals, Rondo's comments aren't so funny.

On Sunday, when Rondo told Doris Burke that the Celtics were able to capitalize on the Heat's tendency to complain to the referees in transition, he only introduced a petty distraction that makes the Celtics looks unfocused and gives an angry opponent something to be angrier about.

You never want to be the team that does the trash-talking, especially when you're not the team that's dominating.

Granted, the Celtics have played very well over each of the last three games of this series—better than the Heat—but they haven't been anywhere near dominant enough to justify that kind of mouthing off. No team is dominant enough to ever talk like that if they're interested in winning a postseason series. 

Publicly mocking your opponent never serves any positive purpose. Best case, it makes you look vulnerable. Middle-of-the-road case, it gives your coach a reason to bench you (see: Bill Belichick and Wes Welker, NFL playoffs, 2011). Worst case, it gives the other team that last little bit of motivation it needs to destroy you, Victoria Grayson-style.

In every case, the team that stays silent is the one that wins. 

The irony is that no one demonstrated this better than the Celtics themselves during the first round of this year's playoffs.

After winning Games 2 through 4 against Atlanta, the Celtics suddenly looked vulnerable in Game 5 and allowed the Hawks to stay alive instead of closing out the series and getting some extra rest. After that game, Hawks owner Michael Gearon Jr. gave the Celtics—particularly Kevin Garnett, the emotional heart of the team—a huge gift when he told ESPN.com's Chris Forsberg that the Celtics are old and Kevin Garnett is the dirtiest player in the league.

Just like that, the Celtics got all the motivation they needed to win Game 6 by a score of 83-80, and afterward, Garnett thanked Gearon for his help.

Elite teams don't need to talk. Elite teams and elite players still get frustrated, but they either brush it off or take it out on the court.

There was no reason for Rondo to take a petty jab at the Heat in the middle of a crucial Game 4 because all he did was incite a team that was bound to rear its ugly head in the second half.

The point guard needs to spend more time at the Gregg Popovich School of In-Game Interviews before he's allowed to encounter Doris Burke again. And in the meantime, here's hoping that the reason Bill Belichick made a detour to the Celtics' locker room after Game 4 was to let them know that that kind of trash-talk won't fly if you want to be a champion.