Basketball doesn't usually care about your height. It cares about your heart, or at least that’s the cliché coaches feed kids who are too small for the varsity squad. But for a few years in Boston, that cliché actually came to life in the form of a 5-foot-9 point guard named Isaiah Thomas.
He wasn't just a player. He was a folk hero.
When Danny Ainge traded for Thomas back in February 2015, nobody expected a championship-caliber revolution. He was the 60th pick in the draft—the literal last guy chosen. You aren't supposed to become the face of the winningest franchise in NBA history when you’re shorter than the average guy at the local YMCA. Yet, Isaiah Thomas didn't just play for the Boston Celtics; he saved them from a directionless rebuild.
The 53-Point Masterpiece and the Tragedy Behind It
If you want to understand why Boston fans still get misty-eyed talking about "IT," you have to look at May 2, 2017. Most people remember it as the night Thomas dropped 53 points on the Washington Wizards in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. It was the second-most points ever scored by a Celtic in a playoff game, trailing only John Havlicek.
But the numbers are only half the story.
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The game took place on what would have been his sister Chyna’s 23rd birthday. She had died in a tragic car accident just one day before the playoffs started. Isaiah was playing through a level of grief that would have sidelined most humans. He had also spent several hours in a dentist’s chair getting his front tooth repositioned after losing it in Game 1.
He played 45 minutes. He took hit after hit. By the fourth quarter and overtime, he was basically a one-man wrecking crew, scoring 29 of his 53 points in the clutch. It was pure, unadulterated grit. You could feel the energy through the TV screen—a tiny man carrying the weight of a city and a grieving family on his shoulders. Honestly, it's probably the most emotional performance in the history of TD Garden.
The Hip Injury and the Business of Basketball
The tragic irony of Isaiah Thomas’s time with the Boston Celtics is that his greatest strength—his refusal to quit—became his professional downfall. During that same 2017 playoff run, Thomas was playing on a torn labrum in his right hip.
He was hurting. Badly.
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Medical experts have since debated whether the Celtics' medical staff downplayed the severity or if Isaiah simply pushed too hard. Regardless, he kept going until his body literally gave out in the Eastern Conference Finals against Cleveland.
Then came the "Business."
In August 2017, Danny Ainge did the unthinkable. He traded the most beloved Celtic since Paul Pierce to the Cavaliers for Kyrie Irving. It was a cold, calculated move. Ainge saw a window to get a younger, healthier superstar and he took it.
Why the Trade Felt Like a Betrayal
- Timing: Isaiah was still recovering from the hip injury he sustained while giving everything to the team.
- Loyalty: He had just spent the summer recruiting free agents like Gordon Hayward to Boston.
- Family: His kids loved Boston; his son Jaiden famously cried because he thought Cleveland didn't have skate parks.
Thomas found out about the trade while celebrating his wedding anniversary. One minute he’s the "King in the Fourth," and the next, he’s a piece of trade bait. It was a brutal reminder that in the NBA, loyalty is often a one-way street.
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The Legacy That Never Faded
If you check the stats today, you'll see a career that became a series of 10-day contracts and "what-if" scenarios. After leaving Boston, the hip was never the same. He bounced from Cleveland to the Lakers, Denver, Washington, and eventually back to Phoenix in 2024.
But in Boston? He’s eternal.
In late 2025, the city finally gave him the "Basketball Lifetime Achievement Award" at The Tradition. He stood on the parquet floor and told the crowd, "Boston, I'm home." It’s rare for a guy who only played two and a half seasons with a team to be treated like a Hall of Famer, but that’s the impact he had. He finished fifth in MVP voting in 2017, averaging 28.9 points per game. Only Larry Bird and Jayson Tatum have had higher scoring averages in a Celtics uniform.
What You Can Learn From the IT Era
The story of Isaiah Thomas isn't just about basketball; it’s about the cost of greatness. It’s a cautionary tale for athletes about the risks of playing through injury, but it's also a testament to the power of a genuine connection between a player and a city.
Next Steps for Fans and Analysts:
- Watch the Tape: If you haven't seen the "King in the Fourth" highlights from the 2016-17 season, go find them. The way he manipulated defenders twice his size is a masterclass in leverage and timing.
- Study the 2017 Trade: It remains one of the most polarizing moves in sports history. Analyze it not just for the stats, but for how it changed the "player-team loyalty" conversation in the modern NBA.
- Appreciate the Small Guards: In a league dominated by 7-footers who can shoot, the era of the sub-6-foot superstar is fading. Thomas might be the last of a dying breed.
The relationship between Thomas and the Boston Celtics was short, but it was loud. It was a reminder that sometimes, the smallest guy on the court is the one you should never count out.