NBA Notebook: Robert Williams III once again Celtics' key to a championship

Joe Mazzulla called Robert Williams III and Derrick White on Wednesday night to let them know about the lineup change that leaked to The Athletic shortly before tip-off and saved the Celtics' season. Boston always kept the door open to Williams III starting and White, who said he isn't entitled to that role like Williams III did before, reacted amicably. 

The rest of the locker room sounded enthralled by the decision. Ecstatic. Excited. Difference-making. 

Williams III's teammates took on more of a defensive stance in front of him entering Game 6, sounding as if they believed they should always play that way. The 76ers shot 1-for-9 to open the first quarter and fell to 0-for-9 late in the game against Boston's single big alignment, the Celtics playing overall more disruptive basketball, forcing 11 turnovers, holding the 76ers to 36.1% shooting and 23.5% from three. The Celtics previously only played Williams III (+18 in Game 6) and Al Horford for seven minutes together earlier in the series. Ahead of Game 7, with three star big men advancing to the conference finals with Miami, Denver and LA, Williams III once again looks like the swing player in Boston's ability to win a championship -- if it advances Sunday - as he was one year ago. 

"To be able to have Rob in there, he changes the game a lot," Marcus Smart said. "Being able to have a lob threat, a rim threat, to be able to protect the rim on the other end, he's huge for us. I was proud to have him on the court. That just goes to show Joe's learning, just like all of us. I know he's been killed a lot -- rightfully so -- he needs to make some adjustments and he's done that. That's all you can ask for, continue to be the best he can be and it takes everybody. It's a full team effort." 

The overwhelming popularity of the move called into question whether the players wanted it for some time. Mazzulla told Boston Sports Journal on Saturday at practice that conversations with the team largely did not drive the decision, but rather Boston falling behind 3-2 in the series and needing both a different look and uplifting presence. 

For what it's worth, Mazzulla expressed late in the season he expected the double big alignment to play just as large of a role in the playoffs as it did last season. Williams III fell for eight games in March with a hamstring injury before returning to the bench. That left Williams III and Horford with only 15 starts and 332 minutes together, and while last year's starting lineup, specifically, fell to a -12.4 net rating in 10 games, Williams III and Horford playing together in general helped Boston outscore opponents by 15.9 points per 100 possessions. 

It starts with defense -- Williams III and Horford holding teams to 103.1 points per 100 possessions that would've surpassed the best league's defensive rating this year and Boston's No. 1 team rating from one year ago. Horford, who largely defended Joel Embiid in isolation earlier in the series, moved higher in the pick-and-roll to defend James Harden knowing Williams III sat in the paint behind him. That took away the deep roll from Philadelphia and threw the Sixers star, driving finishers and even kick-out shooters off enough to drive a Celtics win. Williams III ignored P.J. Tucker. 

"Rob does a lot for us," Horford said. "Just changes the game. Just his presence out there ... I was excited ... our guys did a good job of making sure they got into the ball with Harden and we were very conscious. No question (Williams III starting) was key for us. We haven't (played it often), but I'll tell you what, I'm glad that Joe made that adjustment and we did it, because what a difference. It didn't surprise me, I was happy that it happened, but we just know the impact that Rob has on the court. When Rob's not in there, I feel like a lot falls on my shoulders, and when he's out there, I know that he's got my back and I can be a little more aggressive and do different things."   

The pair of big men only logged nine games, 57 minutes and a +0 net rating in the playoffs due to lagging offensive production. They played brief stints in four recent games where the Celtics posted a ghastly 53.3 offensive rating, but suffocated Philadelphia to 81.3 points per 100 possessions. Boston needed to make a decision between prioritizing offense or defense, and while Mazzulla continued to stress setting the table for defense with offensive execution, the aggression and intensity Williams III allowed the Celtics to play with led to Boston's key breakout scores in the win. That included how they shifted and played on-ball defense, two of the team's weakest areas defensively in an overall successful season on that end. 

Starting Williams III also tightened the front-court rotation immensely and demanded more trust in his play overall, since Grant Williams and the other depth centers did not play off the bench in Game 6. Williams III reached 28 minutes, showing some fatigue into halftime. Mazzulla minimized Williams III's role off the bench, averaging 18.1 minutes, 1.8 shots and 4.0 points per game through the first five games. As the lone big off the bench, he directly stood responsible and struggled guarding the pick-and-roll. Meanwhile Tucker, a prime candidate at the four position for Williams III to guard and cheat away from instead of Embiid, started and averaged 29.5 minutes, but only 3.8 shots per game for the 76ers. 

"We expected it today," Rivers said before Game 6. "We worked on it this morning. We expected it a little bit in last game and didn't see it. I think their highest plus-minus is with that lineup, if I'm not mistaken, so it's not anything we didn't expect. Us moving on the defensive end, I don't know what they're doing, we can only guess. We assume Robert Williams will probably guard P.J. and be a roamer and Smart will probably get put on Tyrese (Maxey) and try to make the game more physical with ball pressure." 

That happened and the 76ers couldn't combat it, Williams III's paint presence mirroring the one Embiid made on the other side of the floor. Tobias Harris scored only two points without dribble lanes. Tucker took eight shots and finished 2-for-7 from three, playing an awkward back-and-forth passing game with Embiid in the post and playing 20 minutes. Mazzulla went back to smaller lineups when Georges Niang, Danuel House Jr. and De'Anthony Melton played in place of Tucker, and that trio only mustered 3-for-11 shooting, two coming on Niang threes. 

The ball now sits in Rivers' court to adjust to the Celtics' final adjustment. Boston outscored Philadelphia by 25.1 points per 100 possessions in the 19 minutes Williams III and Horford played together, posting an 80 defensive rating while their 105.1 points per 100 possessions left much to be desired. Jayson Tatum's continued slump, especially early in games, didn't benefit from less spacing and while Smart and Tatum worked to involve Williams III on offense, he's someone Embiid and Tucker can ignore just as easily as vice-versa unless he makes Philadelphia pay. 

Williams III scored 10 points with two offensive rebounds in the win, with his lobs a clear emphasis after halftime, but the Celtics scored 0.3 points fewer per 100 possessions when he played compared to the time he spent off the floor this year. His defensive on-off numbers, holding opponents to 4.4 points fewer per 100 possessions, ranked in the 88th percentile of the NBA this year. 

"We're figuring it out," Smart said on Saturday. "Last year, we started that lineup with Rob and it worked out well for us. We just wanted to get back to what we know and everybody was comfortable with it, everybody understood their assignments and it made everything a little easier for us. This game's all about adjustments, especially once you get in the postseason, it's all about adjustments. Teams are constantly adjusting, like (Jaylen Brown) said, it's a chess match ... letting (Mazzulla) know, we want to do this more, allow us to do this, we feel comfortable with this, and him taking the time to say ok, I hear you guys, let's do it, or I hear you guys, I took that into consideration, we talked about it, it didn't work, but having that open dialogue." 

The players took on more of a hands-on approach with the communication during Thursday's win, whether Smart lighting up the huddle after a 9-0 first-quarter 76ers run, or Horford commanding the timeout late in the game. Teammates spoke to Tatum throughout the night trying to break him out of his slump and Mazzulla started a lineup he clearly didn't love throughout the course of the season, under fire as Smart described, and admitting mistakes with both his play call frequency earlier in the postseason and not calling timeout late in Game 4. 

While players did not demand the switch back to Williams III, it reflected a group that enjoyed and believed in the style it played last season. They looked like they didn't miss a second, scrambling across the perimeter around Williams III and leaving the Sixers looking lost offensively. Smart attacked Embiid early and Paul Reed later, sneaking behind them to rip the ball from them, turning defense into offense, and while the immense offensive struggles through the middle of the game reflect why Mazzulla emphasizes offense the way he does, the Celtics want to win on defense. 

"This team, I think, in the past has always won with its defense," Brogdon said after Game 6. "At the end of the season, this year, it's going to win with its defense and I think that's what we saw tonight ... Joe can only make so many adjustments, he can only say so much, but it's only the guys in that huddle, sitting on that bench and on that floor that are gonna make the difference. We've gotta stay together and tonight I thought we were very vocal with each other and we did stay together." 

Here's what else happened around the NBA this week...

Boston (tied 3-3 vs. Philadelphia): Jayson Tatum saved the Celtics' season with four threes late in the fourth quarter in an iconic turnaround from a nearly all-time meltdown, starting 1-for-13 from the field as Boston squandered an early 16-point lead. Marcus Smart commanded the offense while Tatum tried to find himself, the Celtics already rattled from a Game 4 loss where not calling timeout call cost them a shot down by one point at the buzzer and an effective no-show in Game 5. Robert Williams III returned to the starting lineup, a move that held the Sixers to 36.1% FG. Tatum and Jaylen Brown made the All-NBA first and second teams, respectively, allowing them to sign $318- and $295-million extensions over five years. 

Charlotte: Hold a 12.5% chance at the No. 1 overall pick in Tuesday's draft lottery, and a 48.1% chance at retaining a top-four selection after finishing with the fourth-worst record in the league. Rookie Mark Williams will represent the team in the room, hoping to team up with Victor Wembanyama, who will likely not attend next week's NBA Draft combine as he continues to play in France. That'll soon become mandatory in the new CBA. 

Chicago: Relying on their 8.5% chance to jump into one of the top-four selections at the lottery to maintain their first-round pick, which is owed to the Magic with top-four protections. If they pick conveys, that'll complete the team's Nikola Vucevic trade package, which included Wendell Carter Jr., the first-round pick that became Franz Wagner and more likely than not this year's No. 11 overall pick. Dalen Terry will represent the team in the lottery room, with a 1.8% chance of landing the No. 1 overall pick. 

Cleveland: Donovan Mitchell made his first All-NBA team in his first season in Cleveland, receiving 45 first-team votes to fall just short of Luka Dončić (60) for the First Team, a 403-349 point total dropping Mitchell to Second Team. Dončić undoubtedly won the statistical battle, while Mitchell led his team to home-court advantage in the East with staggering offensive output in his own right. Mitchell, who attended Game 6 in Philadelphia and met with Celtics players after, expressed his distaste with the vote on Twitter. 

Dallas: Luka Dončić made his fourth straight All-NBA First Team, an unprecedented accomplishment for a 24-year-old and a reminder of his all-time great potential after a stunning fall from the playoff race in the final months of the season. Dallas' gamble to sit its key players in the final games of the season to retain the chance to keep its first-round pick (1-10 protected), which led to an NBA fine, will come to fruition on Tuesday. The Mavs hold a 3.0% chance at moving up to No. 1, 13.9% chance to pick in the top-four and a 20.2% chance to fall back to No. 11 or No. 12 and lose the pick. If they retain the selection, owed to New York for Kristaps Porziņģis, it will remain top-10 protected in the 2024 or 2025 drafts, becoming a second in 2026. 

Denver (won 4-2 vs. Phoenix): Will host the Lakers in a rematch of the 2020 Western Conference Finals starting on Tuesday, a series the Lakers won 4-1. Nikola Jokić averaged 21.8 PPG, 7.2 RPG and 5.0 APG against Anthony Davis in the Bubble on 53.2% FG. He's a completely different player now, unloading on Suns center Deandre Ayton and making him unplayable, averaging a triple double in the six-game series with 34.5 PPG, 13.2 RPG and 10.3 APG on 59.4% FG and 44.4% 3PT. Eliminating Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, Jokić enters round three the bar-none best playoff performer this spring after doubts persisted about his viability in these games. If the Nuggets shoot 37% from three again, it's Finals time. 

Detroit: Enter the lottery on Tuesday continuing their coaching search with a share for the best odds at landing Wembanyama. They, along with San Antonio and Houston, hold a 14% chance at picking No. 1 and a 52.1% chance of landing in the top-four. As the worst team in the NBA this season, the worst pick they can draw is No. 5 overall, which they hold a 47.9% chance landing. Marc Stein confirmed reporting, originally from James Edwards III, that former University Connecticut head coach and current Overtime Elite coach Kevin Ollie is GM Troy Weaver's favorite for their coaching job.

Golden State (lost 2-4 vs. Lakers): Their season of turmoil, inconsistency and hope for a fifth championship for Steph Curry, who played at an MVP level for much of it into the playoffs, ended with a blowout loss to the Lakers in Game 6. Klay Thompson shot sporadically again, Draymond Green's offensive limitations hurt and an array of young players headlined by Jordan Poole struggled immensely to step into larger roles. The Gary Payton II addition helped some, but ultimately put the team's losses on James Wiseman, whose drafting played as big of a role as any in cutting the franchise's run of contention short. They may run it back, but head coach Steve Kerr, GM Bob Myers and Green, who has a $27.6-million player option all enter the offseason facing uncertain futures. Myers' contract expires on June 30 and he'll weigh his future before then, per The Athletic. 

"I want to be a Warrior for the rest of my life," Green said post-game. "I want to ride out with the same dudes I rode in with."

Houston: Michael Shapiro reported the Rockets paid Ime Udoka $28.5-million to become the team's head coach, a figure that placed them ahead of several suitors, including the Raptors. He'll watch as Houston awaits its third straight lottery with top odds, unable to win the No. 1 overall pick yet, but in prime position to draft Victor Wembanyama alongside Detroit and San Antonio. Jake Fischer added to reporting on Houston's aggressiveness to move past rebuilding back into playoff contention, connecting the Rockets to likely free agents James Harden, Khris Middleton and join a number of teams monitoring Jaylen Brown's future in Boston ahead of his 2024 free agency. The Celtics can sign Brown to a super-max extension this summer.

Clippers: Head coach Ty Lue landed on the Bucks' radar after Milwaukee fired Mike Budenholzer last week despite Lue remaining under contract with the Clippers. Uncertainty remains unsure of his future with LA despite the franchise not moving to fire him after a disappointing first-round loss where both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George fell injured again. It's worth watching if the nearby Suns present an opportunity for Lue, too, with Monty Williams potentially on the hot seat after Phoenix' second-round loss to the Nuggets. George and Leonard are extension-eligible this summer. 

Lakers (won 4-2 vs. Golden State): Advanced to the West finals after missing the playoffs entirely last season and losing in the first round trying to defend their title in 2021. Now, they'll face a Nuggets team they beat to advance to the NBA Finals in 2020, though a completely different roster now features Bruce Brown and Aaron Gordon, along with Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. further in their careers. LeBron James shined again playing through a foot ailment, closing out the Warriors series with 30 points, nine rebounds and nine assists on 10-for-14 shooting. James' play, Anthony Davis averaging 21.2 PPG, 14.1 RPG and 3.3 BPG on 53% shooting for the playoffs gives them two counters for the Nuggets' stars. The Lakers enter the series as slight underdogs without home-court advantage. Elevation in Denver could hurt and older team that's looked tired at times.

Memphis: Ja Morant missed the All-NBA team by nearly 100 points, with Damian Lillard and De'Aaron Fox rounding out the third team at the guard spots. Morant received only 10 second-team votes and 14 third-team votes as the leading candidate among players who didn't make the team. A suspension and eight-game absence mid-season after posting himself at a club with a gun, among other alleged incidents, undoubtedly impacted his candidacy. Making a team ahead of his rookie extension would've increased the value of the deal from $194-million to $233-million. Unlike the designated veteran extension, which Morant can still earn if he signs another extension after this deal, you only receive one shot for the designated rookie extension by making All-NBA. A similar reduction occurred in Jayson Tatum's rookie extension when he narrowly missed All-NBA in 2021. 

Miami (won 4-2 vs. New York): Advanced to a seventh East finals under head coach Erik Spoelstra in 13 years, their third in the last four, this one coming most improbably of all with Jimmy Butler battling an ankle sprain, Tyler Herro out with a broken hand and Victor Oladipo falling soon after with a knee sprain. The Heat trailed the Bulls in an elimination play-in game after losing to the Hawks in the first leg of the play-in tournament, and became only the third eighth seed to ever reach the conference finals. They await the winner of 76ers-Celtics Game 7, with the East finals set to begin in Philadelphia or Boston at 8:30 EST on Wednesday. Miami and Boston would face for the third time after splitting 2020 and 2022. 

Milwaukee: Embattled Clippers and Suns head coaches Ty Lue and Monty Williams landed on the Bucks' radar this week after Milwaukee fired head coach Mike Budenholzer. Reports also indicated the team will assess former Hornets head coach James Borrego, Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson and Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin in early interviews, according to Adrian Wojnarowski. Budenholzer's top assistant Charles Lee will also interview, already among the leaders for the Pistons job in the division. The list rounded out with Trail Blazers assistant Scott Brooks, with the unspectacular group lining up to coach Giannis Antetokounmpo indicative of the growing uncertainty in Milwaukee with Khris Middleton possibly entering free agency, Brook Lopez aging and Antetokounmpo himself extension-eligible in the fall. How much longer is this team's window open?

New York (lost 2-4 vs. Miami): Met a stunning end to their season when Jalen Brunson turned it over down by two points in the final seconds of Game 6 after a late Knicks rally. Brunson expressed optimism for the future, though another Julius Randle playoff meltdown (3-14 FG in Game 6) and R.J. Barrett's inconsistency (1-10 FG in Game 6) raised questions about how the team will navigate into the future. Tom Thibodeau will likely return, steering the team through successful seasons recently with a defensive focus and adaptability to offense that led to success on that end this year. Randle's large presence on that side of the ball, 37.4% FG in these playoffs and obvious frustrations visible through those bad games make it hard to not imagine the Knicks exploring deals that send him out this summer. Randle has three years and $93.3 million left on his deal with a player option. 

Philadelphia (tied 3-3 vs. Boston): Led midway through the fourth quarter of Game 6 at home, shutting down Jayson Tatum and on the verge of the east finals and finally escaping their woes against the Celtics. Then, Joel Embiid didn't touch the ball in the final four minutes of the game and the offense cratered. James Harden shot 0-for-4 in the fourth quarter and the team's defense allowed Tatum to break free for four late threes that sent the series back to Boston for a Game 7 on Sunday. Doc Rivers, who lost a record 32nd potential close-out game, stands one the verge of blowing another 3-2 lead that could send Harden into free agency, Embiid's future with the team into uncertainty and certainly put Rivers on the hot seat. 

"I think it was 3 things. We had a lot of wide-open shots, we didn't make them. We stopped moving the ball. I don't think I touched the ball the last 4 minutes of the game," Embiid said post-game. "I didn't touch the ball at all."

Phoenix (lost 2-4 vs. Denver): All doubts about their depth proved correct when the Suns went down in blowout fashion, unable to keep up in Game 6 with the layers of offense leading the Nuggets to the west finals. Devin Booker played as well as any player in the playoffs and Kevin Durant brought what the blockbuster mid-season trade expected from him. Chris Paul struggled immensely before he enters next season at 38 years old, missing the final four games of the series with a groin injury. He only makes $15.8 million next year, though that figure becomes $30.8 million once the season begins. That could provide some cap relief for another team if they're able to eat the $15.8-million now, though Phoenix lost the ability to sweeten such a deal with draft capital. Even with Paul's non-guaranteed 2025 contract making him an expiring deal, it's hard to envision him moving. Reports indicated the team will aggressively shop him. 

Deandre Ayton, after another bad postseason, and coach Monty Williams become the next most interesting parts of the team that could change.