The Celtics got an easy win over the Hornets on Monday night in Charlotte while also seeing a familiar face. Old friend Grant Williams played one of his best games of the year with his new team in Charlotte, posting 23 points and 7 rebounds in Boston’s 118-104 victory. Jayson Tatum led the way for the Celtics with a team-high 25 points and 10 rebounds but it was evident throughout the contest that the former teammates were having a friendly back-and-forth. Tatum spoke on their exchange after the win.
“Grant always has some **** to say,” Tatum told reporters in Charlotte. “That’s my brother for life. I don’t talk trash at all but if it’s someone I’m close with or I know, like today with Grant, I like to have fun out there. It’s always good to see him, compete against him, so we just have fun out there.”
Williams is playing in his home state of North Carolina after being traded away by the Mavericks in a surprise deal at the trade deadline. While Charlotte is suffering through one of the worst seasons in the NBA, Williams has been a bright spot in his new home and played small-ball center for much of Monday’s matchup. Williams held his own against Kristaps Porzingis in the challenging matchup but held his head high after the performance.
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“I was happy to be able to compete and I think I played well enough,” Willams said. “I just wanted to go out there and really be physical and do the things I normally do. I would love to play them every single night because if you play against the best of the best, it makes your team tougher.
I’m excited that these guys got the opportunity to play against them because guys are getting the opportunity to see what it’s like. I think that’s needed for this team as we move forward through the next couple seasons.”
With the win, the Celtics closed out their road trip with a 4-2 record and Tatum was pleased to end the trip on a positive note against a familiar face.
“We’re in a unique position, best record in the league, got home court advantage, all those things, first place,” Tatum said. “I think for most of this road trip, we’ve been playing against teams that are fighting for a playoff position, play-in spots, except for the team tonight. I just understand that it’s not always going to go the way we expect it to, and how are we going to respond if we lose the first game in round one, right? How are we going to respond? Just going through, each game brought something different, and it was good for us to go through that.”
Boston returns home on Wednesday night to kick off a three-game homestand against the Thunder at TD Garden.
