The Boston Celtics defeated the Washington Wizards 123-111 after being down by as many as 16 points. Isaiah Thomas got to Boston at 3 a.m. after being present for the funeral of his younger sister Chyna on Saturday.
“Basketball, when I’m on the court, it just keeps me going,” Thomas told ESPN’s Doris Burke following the win. “I do everything for my sister now.”
Despite all that, Thomas still amazes us with his abilities on the court. Thomas would finish with 33 points with 31 of them coming in the first three-quarters. When the score was 20-5, Thomas lost his tooth in a collision with Wizards forward Otto Porter.
“It just bothers me to talk,” Thomas said to reporters following the game. “My tongue goes right through my tooth, and hopefully we can replace it as soon as possible.”
Ever lost a tooth before? It sucks. But having the strength to go back out on on the court is truly remarkable from Thomas’ side. But Thomas had phenomenal help from his teammates especially Avery Bradley, Jae Crowder, and Al Horford.
Crowder had 24 points on 6-of-8 shooting from beyond the 3-point line, six rebounds, and +26 while on the floor. Horford finished with 21 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds for the night. Horford was a +21 for the night.
The Wizards got off to a pretty hot start, in fact, a 16-0 lead in the first quarter. Kelly Olynyk fresh off the bench came in and became a huge spark for the Celtics by scoring 12 first half points.
In the fourth quarter, Jason Smith and Bojan Bogdanovic of the Wizards were huge sparks for Scott Brooks and the Wizards. They both combined for 15 of the Wizards 31 points in the fourth quarter.
It is important for key role players to step up for the Wizards as it gives their star backcourt of John Wall and Bradley Beal some much-needed rest.
It will be interesting to see how Brooks decides to defend Porter in Game 2, which is scheduled for Tuesday at 8 p.m. on TNT
