With their backs against the wall, down three starters, on the road following back-to-back home losses in which they blew double-digit leads, facing scrutiny aplenty after a lackluster month, the Boston Celtics had a chance Monday night to silence critics with a big road win against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Tied 109-109 with 0.8 seconds remaining, all Grant Williams had to do was make a free throw, or both, to seal what would be a huge win for the team.
Williams was heckled before the shots by Cavs guard Donovan Mitchell, who tried to ice the Celtics forward and get in his head. The words Williams uttered in reply may resonate unfavorably for some time to come.
“I’ll make ‘em both.”
Those words truly may live in infamy, as Williams doinked both free throws, sending the game to overtime, an overtime the Celtics all too familiarly lost in a 118-114 defeat in Cleveland.
“I'll make ‘em both”, he said. “I’ll make ‘em both.”
Just brutal.
This marks the third straight loss for the Celtics, losers of four of their last five, all against playoff teams. The loss drops them to 10-9 over their last 19 games, 45-21 on the season, and a full two games back of Eastern Conference top seed Milwaukee.
Worst of all, this marks the third straight game the Celtics blew a double-digit lead. Friday night they were up 28 to the Nets and ended up losing by 10. Sunday night saw them up by 14 in the third quarter against the Knicks, but they ultimately lost by double digits. And then Monday in Cleveland they were up 92-78 headed to the fourth, only to go cold and fade down the stretch yet again.
Being elite and blowing a big lead once is anomalous. Twice can be forgiven. Three times is a pattern, a troubling one for a team that, headed into tonight, was the betting favorite to win the NBA championship. And Grant Williams, who allegedly wants to be paid in the neighborhood of $20 million per season once he hits free agency, had a chance to redeem himself and his team and score a major win and emotional lift for his team. Sadly, like so often is the case with Williams, it was all talk.
“I’ll make ‘em both.”
Hardly the stuff of champions.
Williams might want to reconsider his blustery approach to the game in the future, especially if he wants to stay in the rotation for the Celtics, let alone get paid in the offseason. For this one might sting the most of all the recent defeats and frustrations for the Celtics.
It’s going to be a long flight home from Cleveland for Williams, and the Celtics, who next play Wednesday, hosting Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers at TD Garden.
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