When Grant Williams checked into Wednesday’s Game 2 with 5:09 left in the first quarter, Joel Embiid was heading to the bench at the same time. But when Embiid returned with 1:05 to go, Williams had a message for the 76ers star and newly-minted NBA MVP.
“For me, it’s just a matter of trying to make them work,” the Celtics forward said. “That’s what I basically said to him. I’m here to make you frustrated and continue to make this hard for you every single night.”
Williams backed up his word. He didn’t give Embiid an inch of space, pressing up against the big man – who hovered over him by about six inches – like an irritant, though that backfired on their first play matched up together. Embiid caught a pass at the top of the key and when he felt a slight bump from Williams, exaggerated the contact and went crashing to the floor. Williams was whistled for a foul and stood there for a moment in some disbelief.
But that play was an outlier for Williams, who had his best overall game in recent memory. He and Al Horford led the charge defensively against Embiid, limiting him to just 15 points and three rebounds in 27 minutes in his return as they helped rejuvenate the Celtics’ defense with a desperately needed performance. Williams also drained four 3-pointers and had four assists as he finished a plus-22 – the best of the Celtics bench – in 29 minutes, the most he’s played in a month.
Not coincidentally, that game one month ago also came against the 76ers. After falling out of the rotation during the second half of the season, Williams’ role is set to increase during this series with Embiid back as the fourth-year forward shows his value as a physical and versatile defender who can match up with the 76ers star and switch as needed.
“Grant plays a role on our team,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “When he plays, when he shoots the ball at a high clip and doesn’t pass it up, we need him to shoot it, and he did a great job of that tonight. He has the ability to guard different guys and execute different matchups with different coverages for us, and at his best just brings a level of physicality and a level of poise to our team. I thought he did a great job of that tonight.”
It’s been a frustrating individual season for Williams, whose playing time has declined during a contract year. But Mazzulla and his Celtics teammates have constantly praised Williams’ professionalism through difficult times and maintained they would still need him in their pursuit of a championship.
That has looked different than expected, but Williams has pounced on his playoff opportunities so far. He came up big in crunch time in the Celtics’ Game 6, series-clinching win over the Hawks in the first round and his impact was felt everywhere in their Game 2 blowout win over the Sixers.
“We definitely missed that Grant, and we’re constantly letting him know that we need that Grant,” Marcus Smart said. “Grant is a big, big part of the equation for us and he’s going to help us win a lot of games. And we’re going to need him. We’re going to need him to stay confident and we’re going to need him to play exactly how he played tonight.”
A chest contusion and some protective padding didn’t deter Smart from flying around and diving for loose balls in Game 2. On one play in the third quarter, Smart dove for a loose ball only to be landed on by Embiid, resulting in a right shoulder and a cut lip.
A day later, those plays helped explain why Smart was named the winner of the NBA Hustle Award on Thursday. The Celtics point guard won the award – which is decided based on hustle stats like diving for loose balls, charges drawn and deflections – for the second consecutive season and third time in seven seasons since it was created.
“Every single night he brings a commitment to being physical, to being the hardest playing guy on the team,” Mazzulla said. “And what’s good about him is his ability to be physical and, at the same time, be detailed in his defense and his scouts and his preparation. He’s just the spearhead of our defense. And so we’re very fortunate to have him.”
Some were skeptical of the 76ers bringing Embiid back sooner than expected for Game 2 when he wasn’t 100 percent recovered from his sprained knee, given they had already secured a win in Boston and took home-court advantage. Both Embiid and Sixers coach Doc Rivers admitted the big man was rusty in his return. But Embiid thought there was a benefit to doing it in Game 2 instead of Game 3.
“I was supposed to be out for 4-6 weeks so I’m not going to be 100% for the whole time or I’m not going to be fully healed for the whole time,” Embiid said. “I felt pretty good to play and I felt like I could help the team defensively and offensively. … I just felt like it probably would have been the same result if I were to come back in Game 3, probably rusty and not myself. But I feel like we got this out of the way and I’m disappointed about a loss but that’s a step towards getting back to myself.”
Embiid will accept the MVP trophy before Game 3 in front of what’s expected to be an electric Philadelphia home crowd. With that energy combined with the rust being gone, a much better version of Embiid will likely follow.
“He’s the MVP, man,” Williams said. “He’s a phenomenal player. Tonight, it was one of those games. First game back. I expect him to be even better the next game.”