76ers too much for Celtics to handle in Game 7: 6 takeaways

The Celtics had a number of alternatives to increase their season in a wild Sport 7 towards the 76ers on Saturday, however Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey have been an excessive amount of for the third straight recreation, and the Celtics bowed out in a 109-100 loss. 

Listed below are the takeaways. 

The Celtics have been with out Jayson Tatum

Many Celtics followers have been already braced for the worst when Jayson Tatum was dominated out for Sport 7 with left knee stiffness. 

Mazzulla stated earlier than the sport that Tatum was day-to-day, so presumably, the Celtics would have been attempting to stroll a advantageous line between attempting to win video games and hold their franchise participant wholesome if they’d superior (so in case you’re searching for a silver lining to the season ending sooner than anticipated, that’s a small one). 

However after dropping two straight video games to the Sixers, one factor appeared abundantly clear: This was not a Celtics group able to successful a championship, and pushing Tatum might have had really disastrous penalties. Knee soreness is regarding. Knee soreness within the leg that has been compensating for a torn Achilles over the past month of the NBA season isn’t one thing to disregard.

Tatum and the Celtics knew the stakes. They knew they have been on the snapping point. They knew how shaky the remainder of the East appears at current and the way believable a Finals run would look in a standard 12 months. They knew that sitting Tatum made it extra doubtless than not that they have been pulling the plug on their very own season. 

You’ll be able to wager each greenback in your checking account that they didn’t make that call evenly, which implies you can too wager each greenback in your 401k that it was the correct choice for each the participant and the franchise. 

The beginning lineup was a wild announcement

The absence of Tatum was an earthquake, and the aftershock was almost as sturdy: Joe Mazzulla opted to start out Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Baylor Scheierman, Luka Garza and Ron Harper Jr.

The Harper information was eye-catching, nevertheless it wasn’t as shocking as one may assume. Mazzulla needed to maintain his rotation intact with Payton Pritchard as the primary participant off the bench, and Harper Jr. slotted in for Tatum. 

Extra noteworthy, maybe, was Garza instead of Neemias Queta and Nikola Vucevic, the latter of whom spent Sport 7 utterly faraway from the rotation, which could have been a little bit too late. Vucevic couldn’t do something towards Embiid within the earlier three contests, his 3-pointers weren’t falling, and he was goal observe for the Sixers’ guards in drop pick-and-roll protection. 

Nonetheless, Garza additionally changed Queta, who struggled mightily all collection to remain out of foul hassle and on the ground. 

Garza, nonetheless, additionally struggled with foul hassle, and Queta got here in for him … solely to wrestle as soon as once more with foul hassle. 

Mazzulla might have hoped to maintain Queta out of foul hassle longer, or he might have merely needed to see if the Celtics might get out to a lead by pick-and-popping Embiid with Garza. 

In both case, Embiid was an enormous downside as soon as once more, and the Celtics merely didn’t have the bigs to cope with him, irrespective of how they began or how they rotated. 

“It was a pair issues we noticed tactically we needed to check out,” Mazzulla stated. “Clearly, give the collection a little bit little bit of a unique really feel and make the most of the roster that we had, and make the most of the blokes that may affect performs and whatnot.”

The Sixers are going to be a troublesome out

Presumably, few readers right here need to learn intensive writing concerning the Sixers, however we must always acknowledge that this collection stated much more about them than it did concerning the Celtics. 

Joel Embiid has been a lot maligned in Boston, and he has deserved lots of the criticism, however after costing the Sixers Sport 4 virtually single-handedly, he was completely dominant in Video games 5, 6 and seven. To his huge credit score, he performed exactly the model of basketball the Sixers wanted — drawing doubles and dishing, limiting his jumpers, and bruising defenders across the rim. On Saturday, he flopped in ways in which might need made some Celtics followers undergo corollary occasions, however he additionally gutted via two brutal hits on to his left knee and confirmed a degree of dedication that Boston followers haven’t seen from him at any level beforehand in any postseason assembly. He completed with 34 factors, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists.

“What modified on this collection was Joel Embiid got here again, they usually’re a totally totally different group,” Mazzulla stated. “That’s what modified within the collection.”

Maxey, in the meantime, burned the Celtics for a hyper-efficient 30 factors on 11-for-18 taking pictures with 11 rebounds and 7 assists. He has absolutely ascended to celebrity standing, and greatest needs to the Knicks in attempting to sluggish him down within the subsequent collection. 

This isn’t the identical Sixers group that we’ve seen in earlier years. After Embiid, Maxey, VJ Edgecombe and Paul George, the roster appears prime heavy, however Embiid’s worst tendencies are balanced out by Maxey’s greatest ones, which permits him to place a larger emphasis on his personal strengths. 

“Give credit score to Nick Nurse. Give credit score to Philadelphia. They obtained higher,” Brown stated. “They’ve gotten higher all through this collection. They’re enjoying good basketball proper now. Defensively, I assumed they have been very, very sound. I give credit score to Philadelphia.”

The pre-Tatum rotation gave the Celtics an opportunity

The odd beginning lineup didn’t actually do its job — the Celtics have been down 32-19 after the primary quarter and have been displaying few indicators of life. 

However Jaylen Brown, who began very poorly, got here roaring again to life. He completed with 33 factors on 12-for-27 taking pictures, 9 rebounds and 4 assists with Tatum out. Defensively, he matched up 1-on-1 with Embiid a number of occasions with blended success, however he gave the Celtics an opportunity late.

Derrick White began to shake off a troublesome collection, however he cooled off once more within the second half and ended up with 26 factors on 26 photographs, making simply 5 of his 16 3-point makes an attempt. 

Regardless of his foul hassle, Queta scored 17 factors and grabbed 12 rebounds. He was +9 in a recreation the Celtics misplaced by 9, which threw his foul hassle into stark aid. 

“It’s lots of various things that may get you into foul hassle, and I’ve obtained to start out myself and be higher, at the start,” Queta stated. “After that, it’s simply being constant. 

“I’ve proven flashes of the place I might be with out fouling and it’s nearly being in keeping with what I do to try this.”

The Celtics went down by double digits a number of occasions, however they rallied again, they usually had lots of possibilities to tie or take the lead within the fourth, however their 3-point taking pictures failed them as soon as once more — they completed 13-for-49 (26.5 %), they usually missed each area purpose within the last 5 minutes save for a meaningless layup by Pritchard.

Brown stated he wished the Celtics would have gone to their expanded regular-season rotation earlier.

“I want we performed that fashion and trusted that fashion extra, even all through the playoffs, even via wins and thru losses,” Brown stated. “Clearly it’s not all the time the simplest choice, however I want that fashion for our group was how we empowered the remainder of our group, and also you noticed tonight how everyone got here out they usually performed their tail off. 

“I want we trusted that extra.”

Hugo González modified the vitality

González was an ideal instance — he was out of the rotation for the whole collection previous to Sport 7, however Mazzulla discovered himself going through an emergency and broke the glass. 

The Celtics wanted his vitality badly — trailing by 13 after the primary quarter, they appeared dispirited and drained. The 20-year-old remedied the latter difficulty immediately, flying everywhere in the flooring and creating further alternatives along with his rebounding, and that frenetic vitality appeared to treatment the previous as properly. 

González made loads of errors, and he missed all three of his 3-point makes an attempt (and each of his free throws), however he was a part of the explanation the Celtics obtained again within the recreation.

What’s subsequent

Ordinarily, we use this last takeaway as an area to spotlight the Celtics’ subsequent recreation, and another notable occasions that is perhaps on the horizon. 

Now, nonetheless, “what’s subsequent” is a reasonably sophisticated query for the Celtics. 

On the one hand, this group appeared like a contender within the common season. Brown will doubtless make the All-NBA First Group. Tatum appeared more healthy than anybody might have hoped (a minimum of till Saturday). Queta appeared like a no brainer starter. Even gamers like Baylor Scheierman and González confirmed actually encouraging flashes. Brad Stevens may understandably need to contemplate shoring up some holes across the edges and giving this core one other shot subsequent 12 months primarily based on the common season.

Then again, the Celtics aren’t a franchise that celebrates regular-season wins. 

“While you don’t win a championship for the Celtics, there’s all the time going to be a degree of, ‘we’ve got to do higher,’” Mazzulla stated. 

The issues are apparent. The Celtics misplaced each recreation on this collection once they shot under 30 % from three, they usually shot sub-30 4 occasions. Mazzulla defended the observe, noting that the Celtics make use of lots of 3-point shooters.

“We exit and get 5 huge males that may put up, we’ll put up it each single time,” he quipped in response to a query about whether or not the Celtics will re-evaluate their enjoying fashion. 

That, nonetheless, is among the largest points the Celtics have: They make use of two nice gamers in Brown and Tatum, however to compete on the degree they need to obtain, they nonetheless must go all out attempt to win the margins (offensive rebounding, turnovers), they usually nonetheless must make a ton of 3-point photographs to win. 

“We obtained beauty. If we hit them, then no one says something,” Pritchard stated. “It’s the tip of the story. We’ve simply obtained to make them. You win a championship, you make photographs.”

The Celtics have the flexibility to enhance on the margins — the complete mid-level exception might land them an improve at heart, as an illustration — or they may put a line within the water on among the market’s larger fish. Giannis Antetokounmpo is sort of actually going to maneuver on. The Nuggets are in turmoil. Anthony Davis is perhaps obtainable for a discount.

All of that, nonetheless, is way sooner or later. For now, this group is concentrated on licking its wounds far sooner than anybody anticipated or needed.

“Man, I’m so grateful to be with this group,” Brown stated. “This group was superior. I had a enjoyable 12 months. That is in all probability one among my most enjoyable years enjoying basketball.”