The Washington Wizards ALMOST edged out the Boston Celtics on Sunday, and it was thanks in large part to another tremendous performance by Bradley Beal. This included a clutch play from the newly-minted three-time All-Star, which prompted an airplane mode celebration after the key basket.

Beal put the Wizards up by five points with less than a minute remaining via this strong drive to the cup (h/t Hoop District on Twitter):

Unfortunately, Beal's heroics was not enough to save Washington from defeat. They (almost inexplicably) allowed Boston to go on a 6-0 run to close out the game, as the Cs escaped with a 111-110 win courtesy of a Jayson Tatum game-winning layup.

Beal put on a show for Washington, finishing the game with 46 points on 16-of-28 shooting and 11-of-12 from the charity stripe, to go along with seven rebounds, two assists, a couple of steals, and a block in 39 minutes of play. He also went 3-of-6 from downtown in what ended up as a truly disappointing loss for the Wizards.

Nonetheless, there's no denying that Washington remains to be one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now. They've lost just two out of their last nine games. Hopefully, this gutting loss to Boston is nothing more than a speed bump for the surging Wizards.