Another Date With Boston: Celtics vs. 76ers, Eastern Conference First Round Preview 

Wouldn’t you know it, the Philadelphia 76ers have a playoff series against the Boston Celtics.

For the fourth time in the last nine seasons, the 76ers find themselves taking on the Celtics in the postseason, only this time it’s in the first round, not the conference semininals. It’s the 23rd time in the history of the two franchises that they’ve met in the playoffs, and currently, the 76ers have lost six straight of those series.

The Celtics have the 76ers’ number, plain and simple. For whatever reason, whenever the two teams match up during the playoffs, Philadelphia can’t get over the hump and take a series from their heated rivals. This year, the odds are stacked against the 76ers as they come in as the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference against the Celtics, who are the No. 2 seed.

Boston is also playing arguably their best basketball over the last month plus, and the 76ers have been up and down all season long. This Celtics team is deep, they shoot, and they’re already feeling like they’re back in the Finals.

If the 76ers can pull off the upset, it’s going to take a team effort, and if they can win, who knows? Maybe they get reinforcements back and go on a run.

Can They Win Without Embiid?

Unlike the last three playoff matchups against the Celtics, the 76ers will head into this series without a key figure, Joel Embiid.

Embiid is still recovering from appendicitis surgery, and it’s unlikely that he will rejoin Philadelphia for this series. However, if the 76ers can pull off the upset series win, Embiid may be ready to make his way back for the second round and beyond.

For now, locking down the center spot falls in the laps of Andre Drummond and Adem Bona. Over the past couple of games, 76ers head coach Nick Nurse has been employing a strategy of starting Bona for early defense and then rolling out Drummond for offense and more rebounding.

It’s been working as seen during the Play-In. Drummond scored 14 points, drilling a pair of threes while also grabbing 10 rebounds for a double-double, and Bona, while only scoring two points, collected three blocks in the win over Orlando.

Those two will have their hands full with Neemias Queta, who is having a career year, averaging 10.2 and 8.4 rebounds, and backup and former All-Star Nikola Vucevic. The offense won’t go through both teams’ centers, but it could be the x-factor in this series.

Tatum And Brown, A Two-Headed Monster

Since they’ve entered the league together, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have dominated as a duo, helping put the Celtics back in the spotlight, winning a title in that time. However, after Tatum tore his Achilles tendon during last year’s playoffs, many thought the Celtics would take a step back in 2026.

Of course, Boston did basically the opposite, with the team being in the same spot as last season, and that was in large part due to Brown. Brown had a career year for Boston, averaging 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.1 assists, leading the Celtics to the No. 2 seed for the second year in a row. putting himself in the MVP race all season long.

READ MORE FROM THE PLAY-IN WIN:

Tyrese Maxey Headlines Resilient Team Win In Play-In Tournament

Brown’s All-NBA season helped the Celtics be buyers at the trade deadline, acquiring Vucevic to help secure the center position, and allowed Tatum to rehab his way back for an end-of-season push.

The 76ers have not seen Tatum play this season, as he was still injured in all four matchups this season, but in just 16 games played this season, Tatum looks like his same old self and is geared up for another championship run. As long as these two stay healthy, they’re going to get theirs in the series, and it’s on the 76ers stars, Tyrese Maxey and Paul George, to answer the challenge and match their fellow All-Stars.

Don’t Let The 3’s Beat You

The Boston Celtics live and die by the three-pointer. It’s their bread and butter and the thing that they do best. This past season, the Celtics hit 1,268 total threes. That ranks ninth in the history of the NBA for most in a season for a team.

Six players hit 240 threes or more, and 10 players hit 115 threes or more. Whether you play center, run the point, or are the backup small forward, you will shoot the three for the Celtics. So how do the 76ers stop this?

Well, the simple answer is they’re not going to. Boston will shoot their threes; it’s just a matter of how many threes they’re going to make. In the four matchups this season between the two teams, the Celtics have attempted 45, 43, 38, and 49 shots from beyond the arc, so it’s safe to say that we’re expecting to see 40+ threes in each game.

However, in those games, they only made 14, 11, 13, and 16 respectively, so the 76ers have done their job to keep Boston in check and keep the make percentage to under 35% a game. It’s unlikely the 76ers will answer the Celtics shot attempts, but if they play their own game of locking down their shots, rebounding well, and not playing Boston’s game, they’ll have a chance to avoid death by three-pointer.

Game Times and Broadcasts

Game 1:  Sunday, April 19, 1:00 p.m. ET, TD Garden, ABC, 97.5 The Fanatic

Game 2: Tuesday, April 21, 7:00 p.m. ET, TD Garden, Peacock/NBC Sports Network, 97.5 The Fanatic

Game 3: Friday, April 24, 7:00 p.m. ET, Xfinity Mobile Arena, Amazon Prime, 97.5 The Fanatic 

Game 4: Sunday, April 26, 7:00 p.m. ET, Xfinity Mobile Arena, NBC, 97.5 The Fanatic 

Game 5 (if necessary): Tuesday, April 28, TBD, TD Garden, TBD, 97.5 The Fanatic

Game 6 (if necessary): Thursday, April 30, TBD, Xfinity Mobile Arena, TBD, 97.5 The Fanatic

Game 7 (if necessary): Saturday, May 2, TD Garden, TBD, TBD, 97.5 The Fanatic

The Numbers

• Records:
  • 76ers: 45-37
  • Celtics: 56-26

• Seed:
  • 76ers: 7th (East)
  • Celtics: 2nd (East)

• Points Per Game:
  • 76ers: 115.9
  • Celtics: 114.9

• Rebounds Per Game:
  • 76ers: 43.6
  • Celtics: 46.4

• Assists Per Game:
  • 76ers: 24.6
  • Celtics: 24.6

• Field Goal Percentage:
  • 76ers: 46.2%
  • Celtics: 46.7%

• Three-Point Percentage:
  • 76ers: 34.9%
  • Celtics: 36.7%

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