Boston Celtics

Marcus Smart shared what he told his hand in Game 2 celebration that went viral

"I was just telling my left hand 'You a bad dude.' And JB came over and he agreed with me."

Marcus Smart stared at his left hand before staring at a 2-0 lead in the Celtics' first-round series against the Nets. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

By Conor Roche

2 minutes to read

A couple of days after Marcus Smart won Defensive Player of the Year, it was actually an offensive play by the Celtics’ point guard that helped seal the Game 2 win over the Nets.

With a little more than a minute left and the Celtics up eight, Smart caught a pass at the top of the key as Boston couldn’t get an open look right away on a key possession. With the shot clock winding down, Smart drove to the lane, dribbling past Kyrie Irving. Two Nets defenders shifted over to help contest Smart’s shot right before the shot clock expired. Smart, who shoots right-handed, thew up a runner with his left hand, which banked in to give Boston a 10-point lead.

With Brooklyn calling a timeout right after the play, Smart slowly walked back to Boston’s bench, pointing and talking at his left hand. Teammate Jaylen Brown joined him, staring at his hand in awe for a few moments before cracking a smile.

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The moment immediately went viral as the Celtics sealed up the Game 2 win. Ahead of Game 3, Smart shared what he said to his hand in that moment.

“Yeah me and JB are always talking about who has a better left hand. We always talk about that,” Smart said. “I’ve said ‘It’s no conversation, it’s me.’

“But nah, it was just a great play. It goes back to our growth. [Jayson Tatum] drove the ball, could’ve taken the shot. I expected him to shoot it [instead of passing it to me]. Two seconds, three seconds left on the [shot] clock, six feet from the basket, they’re short a defender. He makes that play out to me. I make that play with that left hand, especially after [I hurt] my thumb and everything.

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“It was an unbelievable play. JB, he kept edging it on and prolonging that little celebration. I was just telling my left hand ‘You a bad dude.’ And JB came over and he agreed with me.”

Smart had actually struggled shooting up until that point of the game, going 2-for-8 from the field before that shot, his last of the game. It was backup point guard Payton Pritchard who stepped, at least scoring-wise, in Smart’s place. He scored eight fourth-quarter points and had 10 total in Game 2.

Now, the Celtics must move past the thrilling first two wins in Boston as the series head to Brooklyn, where the Celtics can potentially finish off the Nets or come back home for Game 5 with the series tied.

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