The Boston Celtics planned to call a timeout after the Atlanta Hawks' Paul Millsap knocked down a 3-pointer to tie Friday's game at 101. However, there's this guy called Isaiah Thomas.
Thomas waved off head coach Brad Stevens' timeout request and proceeded to isolate one-on-one with the Hawks' Kent Bazemore. Unlike the previous Celts possession, when Thomas missed a layup, the diminutive star gave Boston the 103-101 win on a step-back jumper with 2.4 seconds left.
"Bazemore had that look in his face like he was going to get a stop. I had other plans," Thomas told reporters postgame.
Stevens, meanwhile, was perfectly fine with his point man forgoing the play stoppage.
"I said, 'All right, go win the game,'" he said, according to the Boston Globe's Adam Himmelsbach.
The final tally for Thomas was 28 points (13 in the fourth quarter), another brush with Dennis Schroder, and the Celtics' 12th win in their last 15 games.
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With Bazemore guarding Thomas, Celts teammate Jae Crowder could've forced a switch on a pick and roll that would have put the older, slower Mike Dunleavy on him. But Crowder said afterward that Thomas wanted to score on Bazemore because he had earlier slapped his home floor as a show of force.
Thomas got what he wanted.
"So he wanted to get a bucket on him," Crowder said. "So let him do what he do."