It's one of the greatest performances in Celtics history and the circumstances surrounding it make it even more remarkable.
May 2, 2017. Isaiah Thomas poured in a career-high 53 points in the Celtics' Eastern Conference semifinal victory over the Washington Wizards to give Boston a 2-0 lead in a series they would in seven games.
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The point total was the second-most in the storied playoff history of the C's, surpassed only by John Havlicek's 54 in a 1973 playoff win over Atlanta.
Still, what made Thomas' performance extraordinary was it came days after the death of his sister Chyna in a car accident. A grieving I.T. had also undergone hours of dental surgery to repair three broken teeth he sustained in Game 1 of the series.
And then he dropped 53 on his sister's Chyna's birthday.
It drew praise from around the NBA, not the least of which came from LeBron James, whose Cavaliers would eventually end that 2017 playoff run of the Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals.
Thomas wished his sister a happy birthday Saturday. It would have been her 26th.
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Here are some other notable Celtics games played on this date, courtesy of @BosSportsInf:
1984: Larry Bird (37 points, 11 rebounds, four assists) leads C's to a 116-102 win and 2-0 Eastern Conference semifinal lead over the New York Knicks. Bird shoots 16-for-22 (73 percent) and Boston would go on to win the series in seven on their title run.
1976: Charlie Scott (31 points, three rebounds, eight assists) leads C's to a 104-100 victory over the Buffalo Braves to close out the Eastern Conference semifinal in six games.
1968: Celtics win their 10th NBA title in 12 years with a resounding 124-109 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. Havlicek (40 pts, 10 rebounds, seven assists) leads the way.