Grant Williams

2022 - 5 - 16

Post cover — Image courtesy of "CBSSports.com"

Celtics' Grant Williams shoots his way into Boston folklore with ... (CBSSports.com)

Williams hit seven 3s and led the team with 27 points.

Lopez camped out in the paint to prevent the Celtics from getting anything easy at the rim, and dared Williams to win Game 7. As the Bucks tried in vain to make one last comeback, Portis got loose in transition and went hard to the basket. That may have just been a defensive miscommunication, but the Bucks made a purposeful decision to leave Williams alone the rest of the time. They leaned into that approach in Game 7, and essentially spun a big roulette wheel that they hoped would land on "missed 3s." His final line was 27 points, six rebounds and two blocks on 10 of 22 from the field and 7 of 18 from 3-point land. The message during Sunday's Game 7 was a bit different: "I told him let it fly," Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka said.

Celtics, Grant Williams, Discuss His Epic Game 7-Performance: 'Let ... (Sports Illustrated)

Grant Williams' 27-point performance, making 7/18 threes, propelled the Celtics to the eastern conference finals and a matchup with the Miami Heat.

But with Lopez playing so far off him, he encouraged "Grant Curry" to choose the former and let it fly. "Grant is a good shooter, and he came through. "I told him he has to shoot it. It was fun, but it's just great that we got a win." I'm extremely happy for him." It's safe to say a game-high and career-best 27 points while going 7/18 (38.9 percent) on threes checks that box.

Grant Williams breaks Steph Curry's Game 7 record for 3-point ... (NBC Sports Boston)

Boston Celtics forward Grant Williams made history in more ways than one on Sunday in helping his team to a Game 7 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Batman was busy throughout the afternoon for the C's, even trying to infiltrate a Bucks huddle in the first half. Eddie House and Brian Scalabrine think C's can beat the Heat in ECF Celtics Talk: Grant Curry the Game 7 hero?

“Call him 'Grant Curry'”: Grant Williams hits seven 3-pointers in ... (CelticsBlog)

The third-year forward shot his way into Celtics lore, leading Boston to a Game 7 victory over the Bucks.

You need the guys coming off the bench to be a star in a row. No matter how many times he lost his rhythm or clanked a shot off the rim, Williams continued to shoot the shots Milwaukee gave him. So we had to keep making the pass and he was wide open. In the process, Williams led the Celtics in shot attempts. Brook Lopez continuously sagged off Williams in favor of protecting the paint, as that’s what their defensive gameplan calls for over... After nailing his first three of the game, Williams proceeded to miss three in a row. Although he admitted that the Celtics needed Williams’ production in Game 7, he also said that he told Williams not to get used to that usage rate: Head coach Ime Udoka revealed after the game that he urged Williams to keep shooting in the face of his early-game struggles: It was almost like they were using that defender just to stop me and Jayson from getting to what we wanted. The Celtics forward put up historical numbers in a game where they desperately needed him to. I told him ‘let him fly.’ They’re disrespecting you more tonight than earlier in the series. With their backs against the wall, the Celtics returned home for Game 7 at TD Garden, and despite both teams having multiple All-Stars on their rosters, it was Williams who shined the brightest.

Grant Williams, hot-shooting Celtics blow out Bucks to win Game 7 (NBC Sports)

Grant Williams led a Celtics team shooting well from 3, while the Bucks shot 12.1% from deep, and that at the heart of why Boston won Game 7.

But that shooting luck changed as the half wore on and the Bucks missed their final 11 3-pointers of the first half (a streak that stretched out to 13). The Celtics were up 48-43 at the half The Bucks felt more ready for the moment — they have been in big games before — and started the night knocking down their shots, including an Antetokounmpo 3-pointer. Those Celtics also learned a lesson from Game 5, when they were up 14 in the fourth quarter and still lost the game. Giannis Antetokounmpo was nothing short of brilliant through the first half of Game 7. The Celtics as a team shot 22-of-55 from 3 (40%), many of those clean looks on kick-outs after Tatum drove into the paint. For a quarter, it looked like it might work — then the script flipped.

Social media reaction following Grant Williams' game seven ... (Vols Wire)

The second-seeded Celtics advanced with a game No. 7, 109-81, victory over defending NBA champion Milwaukee at TD Garden in Boston. The Celtics will play Miami ...

The former Vol was 10-for-22 from the field and 7-for-18 from beyond the 3-point arc in 39 minutes. In game No. 7 versus the Bucks, Williams made his fourth consecutive postseason start and scored a game-high 27 points. Former University of Tennessee basketball player Grant Williams and Boston advanced in the NBA playoffs Sunday.