- ABC News
- April 23, 2016
Maybe it was Kelly Olynyk that jogged Brad Stevens' memory. Or maybe it was the game clock. The Boston Celtics owned a double-digit lead with 4.7 seconds to play in the first half of a January tilt with the Memphis Grizzlies. Many coaches would have been content to let their teams inbound the ball and race up the court for a desperation heave. But Stevens, armed with a timeout and his trusty whiteboard, was reminded of a full-court play he had run three years earlier at Butler University in a game against Gonzaga. It fizzled that day, though his Bulldogs, down one with 4.6 seconds to play before getting whistled for a traveling violation, still prevailed over Olynyk's Zags on a miracle steal and buzzer-beater combo. Stevens figured that play might actually work this time. Olynyk set a screen that allowed Isaiah Thomas to catch an inbounds feed from Jae Crowder with momentum. Grizzlies center Marc Gasol alertly read the play and...