Grant Williams pressed into Game 7 service, comes up big; 'He’s not even a rookie anymore the way he plays’

https://www.masslive.com/celtics/2020/09/boston-celtics-rookie-grant-williams-pressed-into-game-7-service-comes-up-big-hes-not-even-a-rookie-anymore-the-way-he-plays.html



Boston Celtics rookie Grant Williams pressed into Game 7 service, comes up big; 'He’s not even a rookie anymore the way he plays’


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Toronto Raptors' Fred VanVleet (23) attempts a three-pointer against Boston Celtics' Grant Williams (12) during the second half of an NBA conference semifinal playoff basketball game Friday, Sept. 11, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. The Celtics won 92-87. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)AP



By John Karalis | JKaralis@masslive.com



A Game 7 is often reserved for a star to make his statement. Sometimes, though, it’s also time for a wildcard.

Grant Williams has been asked to step into a role not usually reserved for rookies, especially not those who are role players. But in a game that came down to the final seconds, it was Williams, who played the fewest minutes in the game for the Boston Celtics, who made some of its biggest plays.

“Oh man, Grant Williams. Big shout out to Grant. The General," Marcus Smart said after the 92-87 win over the Raptors, apparently coining a nickname for the rookie. "He’s not even a rookie anymore the way he plays... For him to come in in a game like that, Game 7, a rookie to come up with that play, even though he missed those free throws, the fact that he was in the mix to come up with that rebound was incredible. Big shout out to Grant Williams tonight.”

All of Williams' minutes came in the fourth quarter. Both of his rebounds were offensive rebounds, showing the work he put in to get to the ball. And in perhaps his biggest play, he took a pass from Kemba Walker and drew a sixth foul on Kyle Lowry, who had been carrying the Raptors back from the brink... again.

“I ain’t gonna lie, that was a lucky play," Kemba Walker said. It was Walker who drove into the lane and dropped the pass to Williams. "Grant just made a tough play, he got that ball because he was super determined... I knew I was going to draw a lot of defenders. But I didn’t make a great pass. Grant just saved me. He saved me.”

Williams missed both free throws, which threatened to put a damper on an otherwise impressive performance, but he quickly redeemed himself.

With 17 seconds left and Boston up by three, Williams switched onto Fred VanVleet, the only Raptor who made more than one 3-pointer in Game 7. VanVleet sized Williams up and, with the shot clock winding down, tried to side-step Williams to get a clean look. He never got free, and the ball ended up in Walker’s hands for the game-clinching free throws.

“I know Grant’s going to be prepared," Brad Stevens said. "Every time they came down in that small lineup they did a good job, either (OG) Anunoby or (Pascal) Siakam, if we had a big in, of finding the guards and involving the big a little bit more and those guys are tough to guard. Siakam made a couple of nice moves against Grant, but I thought Grant guarded him pretty well, and I thought the last play, when he switched out on VanVleet, was great.”

Williams' numbers aren’t going to pop off any screens, but his teammates know how important he was down the stretch.

“He brings the energy. He’s so comfortable. His confidence through this series has risen,” Smart said. “He’s hit key 3′s for us, he’s played great defense, and when he’s on the court he gives it 110%.”


bob


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If we can't all see why Marcus Smart is so important to the Cs, just think how you would feel after Smart's comments relating to Grant's contribution in game 7 against Toronto if you happened to be Grant Williams.

Leadership is often getting other players to play better just as it is making key plays.

Brad Stevens decision to put Grant in the game with 7:13 left was a risky gamble and it almost blew up in our face.  What exactly did he do?  Rewind the tape and see for yourself.

He is credited with 2 offensive rebounds, a steal and perfect on the ball defense on VanVleet on the perimeter.

He also was responsible for getting beat off the bounce 3 times by Siakum who scored at the rim twice and also went 1-2 at the line after Grant fouled him.  He let Norman Powell score in the paint and he was too slow to pick up Lowery who went past him for a layup.  He really only had 1 offensive rebound.  The 2nd one he fought hard for but he could not control the ball and it was ruled out of bounds when he tried to throw it back in.  

He went to the line in a critical situation and missed both free throws.

He gave up 7 points in 7 minutes and 13 seconds.

JT's offensive rebound from his missed free throws is a rare occurrence. I think Boston was lucky to escape this one.

He is credited with the stop on Fred but go watch the tape and you will see that Jaylen Brown was just as responsible for stopping that play.  Brown picked up VanVleet and checked him all the way over to the corner and then back out along the end line and then filtered him over to Grant.

Grant definitely helped us win this game and in the end that is the most important thing that happened but when I look at the sequence of plays that Grant was involved in I think Brad should not have put him in the game at that point.

dboss wrote:Brad Stevens decision to put Grant in the game with 7:13 left was a risky gamble and it almost blew up in our face.  What exactly did he do?  Rewind the tape and see for yourself.

He is credited with 2 offensive rebounds, a steal and perfect on the ball defense on VanVleet on the perimeter.

He also was responsible for getting beat off the bounce 3 times by Siakum who scored at the rim twice and also went 1-2 at the line after Grant fouled him.  He let Norman Powell score in the paint and he was too slow to pick up Lowery who went past him for a layup.  He really only had 1 offensive rebound.  The 2nd one he fought hard for but he could not control the ball and it was ruled out of bounds when he tried to throw it back in.  

He went to the line in a critical situation and missed both free throws.

He gave up 7 points in 7 minutes and 13 seconds.

JT's offensive rebound from his missed free throws is a rare occurrence. I think Boston was lucky to escape this one.

He is credited with the stop on Fred but go watch the tape and you will see that Jaylen Brown was just as responsible for stopping that play.  Brown picked up VanVleet and checked him all the way over to the corner and then back out along the end line and then filtered him over to Grant.

Grant definitely helped us win this game and in the end that is the most important thing that happened but when I look at the sequence of plays that Grant was involved in I think Brad should not have put him in the game at that point.

Totally agree and I was calling out Stevens in real time on the Game On, was idiotic not to get Theis in there sooner and was idiotic having him cover Siakim instead of Jaylen. If at ain’t broke don’t fix it. We should have won that game comfortably, BS’s moves made that game way too close for comfort.