Celtics forward reflects on important NBA Finals shot

The Boston Celtics have flipped the page to the 2024-25 season after capturing their 18th NBA Championship.

With the new season approaching, however, there is still some time to reflect on the historic season the team enjoyed.

One of these recent reflections was by Xavier Tillman who hit an important 3-pointer in game three of the NBA Finals to extend Boston’s lead over the Dallas Mavericks in a tight game.

A MassLive article written by Souichi Terada included quotes made by Tillman in an appearance on an X space held on the NBA 's account.

“I made it and I looked right at the bench because I think Dereck Lively was right behind me when I shot it and he was like, ‘(expletive) no,’” Tillman said. “So when I hit it, I looked right at him and smiled and was like, ‘Yep.’

“That was a pretty cool moment because the art and the love and the passion of basketball is all about being competitive. So for me to be able to back up how I was playing and feeling and talking trash, that was an amazing feeling.”

Tillman signed a two-year extension with the Celtics this offseason worth $4.8 million.

Tillman played an important role for the Celtics throughout the Playoffs once Kristaps Porzingis went down with an injury.

Tillman appeared in eight Playoff games and averaged 8.6 minutes, 1.5 points and 1.8 rebounds per game while shooting 62.5% from the field.

Tillman showed how impactful he can be for Boston's rotation. That is why president of basketball operations Brad Stevens decided to keep Tillman on the team.