The key to Celtics players going off for 50 points is apparently having Gerald Green on the team


The last time a Celtics player went for 50 prior to Isaiah's huge Friday night was nearly 11 years ago. Everyone from that team you'd assume would be long gone, but there is one guy who witnessed both as a Celtic. Gerald Green.

But you never forget watching a 50-point night. So even though Green was a starry-eyed 20-year-old rookie when Paul Pierce went for 50 in a double-overtime loss to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in February 2006, he instantly recalled details of the game when asked about it at Monday's practice.

Maybe the more surprising part: Green believes that Isaiah Thomas' 52-point performance during Friday's victory against the Miami Heat might have been even more impressive, even if there wasn't a player of James' magnitude on the opposite side.

"[Pierce] and LeBron were really going at it," Green said. "I think LeBron had like [43 points] himself. It was one of those games where you’d seen two great players going head-to-head. And Pierce took the challenge, LeBron took the challenge, they were both guarding each other. It was an unbelievable game, between two competitive guys.

"But what I.T. did the other night -- he literally put us on his back and carried us in that fourth quarter, man. We needed him.

"I’ve just never seen nobody score that many points in one quarter before," Green said. "That was just unbelievable to me."

"I’ve always been a fan, man. But now I’m really a fan. My son goes around shooting the basketball saying, 'Isaiah Thomas!' So it’s cool, it’s cool.""


Green and Thomas were also briefly teammates in Phoenix before the Suns foolishly gave up on IT. Thanks Phoenix!

Its been nice to see Gerald return to his original NBA squad and play well as of late. Credit Green for putting in the work to get back in the league and have a long career. If he's really the key to Celtics players putting up 50+ points, we might as well keep him around for the next 11 years. He's still believe it or not only 30 years old.

Related: Could Isaiah Thomas actually be the next Allen Iverson?
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Isaiah Thomas with career-high 52 points, Al Horford gets 21 and the Celtics beat the Heat (videos)
Video: Isaiah Thomas' 52 point night (29 in 4th quarter)