Celtics, Grant Williams Give Conflicting Perspectives on Hornets Forward's Flagrant 2

Boston forward Jayson Tatum was knocked to the ground during Friday evening's contest.

Jayson Tatum before Friday's Celtics-Hornets contest. | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Friday's game between the Boston Celtics and Charlotte Hornets was a chippy one, culminating in Hornets forward Grant Williams bowling over Celtics forward (and former teammate) Jayson Tatum and receiving a Flagrant 2 foul.

Though Tatum rose from the Spectrum Center floor unscathed, the play annoyed his Boston teammates—and they made no secret of their feelings after the game.

"That wasn't a basketball play. Grant knows better than that," forward Jaylen Brown said via writer John Karalis. "There's no place in the game for that. I thought JT and Grant were friends. I guess not."

"He's just too damn big to be doing stuff like that," guard Derrick White added via Karalis; though Tatum is two inches taller than Williams, the latter has nearly 30 pounds on the former.

Jaylen Brown on Grant's flagrant foul: "That wasn't a basketball play. Grant knows better than that ... There's no place in the game for that. I thought JT and Grant were friends. I guess not."

— John Karalis 🇬🇷🇺🇦 (@John_Karalis) November 2, 2024

Derrick White on the Grant foul: "He's just too damn big to be doing stuff like that"

— John Karalis 🇬🇷🇺🇦 (@John_Karalis) November 2, 2024

Williams, for his part, calmly defended his actions to NBC Sports Boston's Kayla Burton.

"I think it's moreso he didn't see me before anything else. I definitely make contact with the body before I reach," Williams said. "Definitely not intentional. Not trying to hurt him by any means."