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Boston Celtics rookie Grant Williams experienced two completely different range of emotions on Friday night in the closing seconds of Game 7 versus the Toronto Raptors. Fortunately, the Celtics walked away with the win and Williams was able to have some fun with the situation.
The moment began to unfold with 35.4 seconds left and the Celtics up by two points. Williams was fouled after securing a rebound under the basket and was sent to the free-throw line with the likely chance to seal the win. Instead, Williams missed both attempts.
Following the missed shots, Jayson Tatum secured the offensive rebound and was fouled. He made one of two shots from the line to put the Celtics up by three points. Afterward, Williams jokingly thanked Tatum for bailing him out at the line.
When it came to the free throws, I was actually super confident going to the line. I was like, ‘It’s just two free throws!’ Next thing you know, when I hit the back rim, I was like, ‘Oh, well, that’s just a back rim. It looked good, felt good.’ Next thing I knew I shot the next one, hit the same spot so I was like, ‘Oh my goodness!’
I don’t ever remember a time where I miss clutch free throws like that, so it definitely was a laughing moment for me when [Jayson Tatum] got the rebound. I was like, ‘Thank you, JT, for saving my career here in Boston.’
After Williams could have iced the game at the free-throw line, he came up with a game-saving block on Fred VanVleet with 12 seconds left. The blocked shot ultimately sent the Celtics to victory and his performance earned praise from his teammates.
“He’s not even a rookie anymore the way he plays, the way he sees the game, the way he comes in, he brings the energy,” Marcus Smart said. “He’s so comfortable. His confidence through this series has risen. He’s hit key 3s for us, he’s played great defense, and when he’s on the court he gives it 110%.”
Now, the Celtics will move on to face the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals beginning on Tuesday. The Celtics won the regular-season series versus the Heat but Miami has been one of the hottest teams in the playoffs and the matchup figures to be closer than before.
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