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They were two massive contributions from two unlikely sources, and they helped brighten things for everyone.
“I think we used every inch of our bench tonight to pull it out,” forward Jaylen Brown said. “It was a long game. We probably won, lost, won and lost again, and then figured a way to pull it out in the end. “
Payton Pritchard had 32 points to lead the Celtics. Brown added 27 points, 12 assists, and 10 rebounds. Derrick White sat out to rest.
But the late boosts from the two rookies will be the lasting images from this win that was filled with flaws and thrills.
The Celtics trailed, 117-112, with just 7.9 seconds left in the first overtime when Sam Hauser threw a touchdown-style full-court pass toward Williams inside the arc.
Even though Williams had not practiced the play with the Celtics, he had worked on it with the team’s G League affiliate, so he knew what was coming.
Pritchard saw what was transpiring and started calling for the ball before Williams caught it. The center’s touch pass was clean, and Pritchard hit the 3-pointer to at least give Boston a chance.
“He threw it to me, and I pumped faked, and it was as simple as that,” Pritchard said.
After Nets guard Nolan Traoré hit just one of two free throws, the Celtics called timeout with 2.5 seconds left. Williams was initially on the floor instead of González, but when Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla noticed Brooklyn’s defensive coverage, he quickly subbed.
Brooklyn’s zone set was focused on covering the arc, but it left one massive gap in the left corner. González sprinted there, took a pass from Baylor Scheierman, and hit the biggest shot of his brief NBA career.
“You’ve got nerves, but when you step on the court you know you’ve got to try to make a play,” González said. “It’s also easy when you have a coach and teammates who are trusting you that if you take the shot, you’re going to make it.”
Williams took the floor for the second overtime, and his 3-point play with 3:30 left gave the Celtics a 123-120 lead. With the Celtics ahead by 2, Pritchard dashed through the lane and converted a high-arcing lefthanded layup to make it 130-126 with 44.2 seconds left. Then Williams swatted away a Traoré layup attempt to all but seal the win.
After the final buzzer, Williams was swarmed by his ecstatic teammates.
“Just kind of being ready for whatever,” Williams said. “You don’t really know until you get here if you’re going to suit up or not, so just kind of being ready.”
Of course, the game never would have required these heroics from the two rookies if the Celtics had not coughed up a 10-point lead in the final three minutes of regulation against a lottery-bound Brooklyn team that lost to the Knicks by 54 points two nights earlier.
Regardless, the general mood in the locker room was upbeat.
“We don’t always play perfect, but we guarantee that we play hard,” Mazzulla said, “so that gives you a shot every night.”
Added Brown: “There were some times we were done and down, but we stuck with it. Those are good things for the spirit of our team. And our team made plays.”
Pritchard said that these tense moments that require precise execution offer great practice for the future, when games will mean more. It also provided a reminder that even when a night appears over, it is important to keep believing.
“It just shows you that no game is out of reach,” Pritchard said. “Down 5 with seven seconds left, things can swing our way.”
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.