Celtics star Jaylen Brown had a feeling the ball would wind up in the hands of Derrick White on Boston’s second-to-last possession of Game 4 on Monday night
And Brown made sure to give a heads up to White, who hit the difference-making 3-pointer from the corner with 45 seconds left to lift the Celtics to a 105-102 victory at Gainbridge Fieldhouse and a series sweep of the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals.
“Before I told D-White, ‘Stay ready. It’s coming,'” Brown told reporters, per NBC Sports Boston. “That was just a big shot. Big shot to put us up three and help us advance to the Finals.”
Brown nearly lost his dribble on the play as he slashed into the lane with Pacers defenders converging all around him before he found White left alone in the corner.
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The poise from Brown, who was named Eastern Conference finals MVP, shone through in that moment and perhaps was due to the practice he had put in running that play.
“Great shot,” Brown said. “We work on that all the time, 2-on-1 reads. They veered it, I was able to get to the paint with (Myles) Turner on me and just found him.”
White didn’t exactly have the hot hand going into the final minute of the fourth quarter. After making his first 3-pointer of the game, White missed seven straight shots from beyond the arc.
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But he had the confidence that his next attempt would go through the net. And White credited Brown for helping make it all happen in a clutch situation.
“Just space and just trust that JB is going to make the right play like he has this entire year,” White told reporters, per NBC Sports Boston. “I could tell I got a good look and just wanted to stay in the shot and knock it down. Obviously, I missed a lot in a row, but they started to feel a little better. So, I just stayed confident and was able to make them.”
Featured image via Trevor Ruszkowski/USA TODAY Sports Images
