Grant Williams explains flagrant-2 foul on Jayson Tatum

While the Celtics were putting the finishing touches on their win over the Hornets on Friday, there was a situation right at the end of the game. Grant Williams fouled Jayson Tatum hard, causing the Celtics star to fall straight to the ground. Jaylen Brown and some Celtics took exception to Williams’ hard foul.

After review, Williams was ejected when the play was deemed a flagrant-2 foul. Williams had an early night in the Hornets loss, leaving with 2:02 left in the game. The Hornets also imploded at the end despite playing the defending champions close throughout the game. The former Celtics forward explained after the game what happened to the ejection from his perspective.

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“I think at the time of the game, I think it’s the stress, the flagrant 2,” Williams said. via CLNS Media. “It was a transition opportunity and I tried to make a play on the ball. I reached across his body. When you slow down the replay, it looks like I’m making the play and I’m just trying to go for it. JT is one of the ​​my closest friends in the league. It’s not intentional.”

Williams added that he believes there will be no additional ill will with Tatum after the play. Williams said he wasn’t able to say anything to Tatum after the play as Tatum jumped right off the ground and went to the free throw line. Brown called Williams after the game and said the foul was intentional and described it as a football play.

In an interesting wrinkle, the Celtics and Hornets play again at 18:00 Saturday in Charlotte as part of the back-to-back. While Williams doesn’t think the error was anything serious, it set the stage for the two teams going into the second game.

It’s not the first time that Williams has gotten into a fight with his former team. Last season, when Williams was still on the Mavericks, he hit Brown hard on one play. Brown wasn’t happy about the hard foul after the game last season, so there’s a bit of history there. Williams spent his first four seasons in the league with the Celtics before getting a sign-and-trade with the Mavericks.

“I don’t think anybody thought it was malicious intent by any means, just because you don’t see somebody running up to me,” Williams said. “JB was frustrated because you don’t want to hurt your teammate and stuff like that, and I understand that. There was nothing, in my mind, that hard or deliberate.”