Gritty Celtics Face Their Toughest Challenge Yet Against Red-Hot 76ers
By Matthew Geagan, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Celtics are moving on after a hard-fought seven-game series against the Milwaukee Bucks in the opening round of the NBA Playoffs, but there was very little celebrating after their 112-96 win on Saturday night.
The Celtics were business-like in the locker room as if it was just another win during the regular season. That's because they know things are about to get even tougher with a matchup against the three-seeded Philadelphia 76ers in the second round.
Here's the schedule for the upcoming Boston-Philadelphia Eastern Conference Semifinals:
Game 1: Monday, April 30, 8 p.m. in Boston
Game 2: Thursday, May 3, 8:30 p.m. in Boston
Game 3: Saturday, May 5, 5 p.m. in Philadelphia
Game 4: Monday, May 7, 6 p.m. in Philadelphia
Game 5: Wednesday, May 9, TBD in Boston*
Game 6: Friday, May 11, TBD in Philadelphia*
Game 7: Sunday, May 13, TBD in Boston*
*If Necessary
The Celtics won three of their four matchups against the 76ers in the regular season, but the two teams were done playing each other in late January. Much has changed since then.
Philadelphia is the hottest team in the NBA at the moment. They dispatched the Miami Heat in five games in the first round, a dominant followup to their regular season-ending 16-game win streak. Their average margin of victory in the last 21 games has been an incredible 13.3 points. Yes, these 76ers are the real deal.
Years of tanking is paying off for Philadelphia and the process is starting to yield results. Ben Simmons has emerged as the Rookie of the Year favorite and he's got a great running mate in big man Joel Embiid. The Celtics are going to have their hands full with Simmons, a 6-10 point guard who does just about everything on the floor (minus hitting threes). He averaged 18.2 points, 10.6 rebounds and nine assists against the Heat in his first-ever playoff series, with a masked-Embiid averaging 22.9 points and 11 rebounds in his three games in the series. Philadelphia has a solid supporting cast surrounding those two young stars as well, with veteran sharpshooter J.J. Redick leading the way with 20 points per game against Miami and Dario Saric adding 16.6 points of his own. They also received solid contributions from Marco Bellinelli and Ersan Ilysova off the bench.
Most importantly, the Celtics are without Kyrie Irving, who isn't around to drop 40 points or tell off a Philly fan. The one game they lost to Philadelphia was the one game in the series that Irving didn't play.
The Celtics have turned into a gritty team that fights tooth and nail since Irving underwent knee surgery earlier this month, but they're in for their biggest battle against the fast paced 76ers. Their top-ranked defense is going to have to continue to play like a top-ranked defense. Having Marcus Smart back is a big part of that, and his matchup with Redick or Simmons or whoever Brad Stevens puts him on will be one of the more entertaining aspects of the series. But it's going to take everyone for the Celtics.
Boston is going to need Al Horford to continue to do his thing, which is a little bit of everything. He'll likely be tasked with going shoulder-to-shoulder with Embiid, which he had success at during the regular season. Embiid shot 39 percent in his three games against Boston in the regular season, his lowest against any opponent, and that number dipped to 36 percent when Horford was guarding him.
Life will be even more difficult for Boston if Jaylen Brown is still hampered by a hamstring injury that he suffered on Saturday night. He thinks he'll be ready for Game 1, but it's unclear if that will be the case, and even if he does play, he may not be at full speed. That would be another big blow to a team that has bounced back from several big blows throughout the season.
If Brown is out or slowed by the injury, that just puts more pressure on Boston's 20-year-old rookie, Jayson Tatum. He followed up his phenomenal regular season with an up-and-down series against the Bucks, but has to be feeling pretty good about himself after a 20-point night in Game 7. He averaged 15.4 points in the seven-game set against Milwaukee, shooting 40 percent, and he scored 19-plus points in four of the seven games. But in the other three games, Tatum averaged just 8.7 points and his shooting dipped to 33 percent. The Celtics can't afford any off nights from their rook against Philadelphia.
And with Irving out, the spotlight will once again be shining on Terry Rozier in his head-to-head matchup against Simmons. The third-year guard has been great since taking over for Irving in the starting lineup and he averaged 17.6 points and 6.7 assists against Milwaukee, but in Simmons, he's about to tango with a whole different animal than Eric "Don't Call Me Drew" Bledsoe.
The future is bright for both franchises and this series will likely be the first of many these old-time rivals have over the next few years. But the advantage heading in leans heavily toward Philadelphia. Stevens will no doubt have his team ready for the challenge and he may even have another trick or two up his sleeve (Semi Ojeleye, anyone?). His Celtics have overcome adversity all season long, whether it was conquering injuries or pulling off improbable comeback wins. They've been counted out so many times, but flipped the script every time.
The Celtics won't go down without a fight, because that's who they are. But they're about to face their toughest test yet against these upstart 76ers.
