Former MSU star Xavier Tillman hits game-winner for Celtics (Video)

I don't know about you, but I miss Xavier Tillman.

Not only was he one of the best post players Michigan State has had under Tom Izzo, but these past few seasons have made me miss him even more. Tillman is the last reliable center the Spartans have had on their roster. Ever since he went to the NBA in 2020, the Spartans have yet to find his replacement.

Since going to the NBA, Tillman has had a very solid career.

In the 2020 NBA Draft, he was selected in the second round and 35th overall to the Memphis Grizzlies. He spent his entire career in Memphis, until earlier this year when he was traded to the Boston Celtics. He has been the same reliable player for the Celtics that he was with the Grizzlies, but Friday night he had his best moment in a Boston uniform.

Tillman will never be the best player on an NBA court. He also will never be a player a team turns to in crunch time. But that doesn't matter. Tillman is the perfect player that any NBA team needs. He will do all the little things like fight for loose balls, get the tough rebounds and make the game-winning plays, even the ones that don't show up on the box score.

It just so happens that his game winner Friday night will show up on the boxscore. Tillman did what Tillman always does and found a way to come up with the loose ball. When he got the ball, he didn't even hesitate. He drove to the lane and hit a tough floater to give the Celtics the lead.

This Boston team is one of the best teams in the entire league. It would've been easy for Tillman to give the ball up to one of the many superstars on their team. But he did what he does best, and made the tough play to help his team win.

This season, Tillman is averaging 5.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per game. But as I mentioned, he does so much for this team that doesn't show up on the box score. That's why he is regularly in the game in crunch time like he was Friday night.