BOSTON — The closing scene of Game 1 played nearly out as frantically as the Game 5 that preceded it one week earlier. James Harden pulled up from above the arc over Al Horford for a game-winning three the same way Trae Young did.
The Celtics awkwardly ran an in-bounds play where Marcus Smart tried to dump the ball to Jayson Tatum off the drive, who wasn’t ready, after Derrick White’s aimless pass to Al Horford cost Boston the last shot after Young’s dagger. Both times, the Celtics lost after squander a multiple-possession lead with under four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.