As the Boston Celtics defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in game seven of their second-round playoff series, a new hero was born.
Grant Williams was Boston’s unlikely savior, as he exploded for 27 points on 10-of-22 shooting from the field and 7-of-18 from the perimeter. Throughout the season, Williams has become an integral member of the Celtics rotation, and a performance like the one he had in game seven goes to show why the team and its fanbase rate him so highly.
Of course, when you provide a game-winning performance in a game-seven, with the Eastern Conference finals on the line, your stock takes a sharp upturn. And with just one year remaining on his rookie-scale contract, questions are beginning to arise about Williams’ long-term future in Boston and how much it’s going to cost the team to retain him via an extension.
Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors is the latest high-profile name to question what Williams could be worth on the open market should the Celtics choose not to offer a contract extension this summer.
“Grant Williams made himself a lot of money in that game right there. Now, obviously, he has another year, and you know the business of basketball. But the way he shot the basketball, and the way he defends, the size that he has.
Now, he shot the ball well all year, so I’m not taking anything away from that. But when you go on that stage, in game seven, and you do that, that means a little more. And Grant Williams showed up in a major, major way for the Celtics,” Draymond Green said in a recent episode of The Draymond Green show.
Jayson Tatum Heaps Praise on Williams
Following Williams’ playoff career-high, All-Star Jayson Tatum discussed his teammate’s impact on the game, crediting him with winning the contest for their team, and helped set up a conference finals showdown with the Miami Heat.
“Grant played great tonight. He took more shots than anybody on the team. I think that’s a first – I told him don’t get used to that. But obviously, we needed him tonight; he played amazing and had 27 points.
In the playoffs, you need that. You need guys to come off the bench and be a star in their role. You know, Grant won us a playoff game tonight. A game seven. I’m extremely happy for him,” Tatum told reporters after the game.
Not only did Williams help his team to victory and score a career-high for the post-season, but he also set a new record for most three-point shots attempted in a game-seven – surpassing Stephen Curry in the process.
Celtics Head to Miami For Conference Finals
If Williams wants to continue staking his claim for a big payday on his next contract, he will get the perfect opportunity as the Celtics head to Miami for the opening two games of the conference finals.
Boston is now just 14 games away from an NBA championship (if both series go another seven games,) and will be relying on every member of their rotation to step up and be counted. Of course, the Heat are no joke, as they pride themselves on the defensive side of the floor and love to play a physical brand of offense.
However, the Celtics have just overcome a physical Milwaukee team. They aren’t far removed from sweeping a Brooklyn Nets team that boasted Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving – so they will be quietly confident in their chances of progressing onto the NBA finals.
“This is the group I feel like is poised enough to get it done. I feel like everything that we’ve overcome, all these battles and challenges and adversity that we’ve been through this season, as well as the challenge that we just had overcoming the defending champs, I think that we are prepared. I think that we’re ready to take that next step. We just got to go out and take it,” Jaylen Brown told reporters shortly after taking care of business against the Bucks on Sunday, May 15.
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Draymond Green Says Celtics’ Newfound Hero Just Earned Himself a Big Payday