As was mentioned, also a few bad turnovers, but probably more noticeable since Brown didn’t play 
2023-24 Celtics
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Yeah it was kind of a tale of two halves for JT
Q1 2/5, 1/4 from 3
Q2 2/5, 0/2 from 3
1H 4/10, 1/6 from 3
Q3 3/5, 2/3 from 3
Q4 3/7, 1/1 from 3
2H: 6/12, 3/4 from 3
I am missing a shot somewhere in there, but he was better in the 2nd half
I've now heard multiple commenters praise CJM's creativity with coverages - it's not so much that putting PP on Joel for stretches neutralizes Embid, but it fucks with their plans on other parts of the court and fucks up the sets they wanted to run, etc., and just throws them off their game for a bit. I was listening to Max and he loved it - "oh, what's Payton doing over there? If I can see it, why can't the Sixers see it? What are they doing?!?"
It's one thing to hunt PP. It's another thing to be offered the option to hunt PP when you weren't planning to.
It's one thing to hunt PP. It's another thing to be offered the option to hunt PP when you weren't planning to.
Joe is a very very creative coach, and having time to get acclimated and staff to handle details has really unleashed him.
It actually means that Paul Reed was +15 (and had a Net of +40) in 15 minutes. Of other note, Jaden Springer, who did a couple of bonehead things that I'm sure drove Nurse crazy was a +20 (Net +50) in 20 minutes as it looked like Reed's and Springer's athleticism helped PHI out when they played.
Interesting that the Cs ended up outrebounding PHI (45-41) even though Brisset didn't play. I guess JMazz decided he was going to go all-in with shooting - probably to get Embiid out of the paint.
I assumed it was just to let Horford catch his breath. Horford was out there nearly minute-for-minute with Embiid, except for a bit at the end of the 3rd IIRC.
I was thinking about it this morning.
Sitting at 9-2, outscoring your opponents by over 13 points a game, when you have had a schedule that includes the following:
Beat 9-3 Philly on the road by 10.
Lost to 9-3 Philly by 3, also on the road.
Beat the 6-5 Knicks twice, once on the road by 4, and once at home by 16
Beat the 7-4 Pacers by 51 at home
Beat the 7-4 Heat on the road by 8.
Lost to the 8-3 TWolves on the road by 4.
If you eliminate the Celtics games, these teams would be a combined 35-9. They're 2-5 against the C's. And the C's have played 7 of their 12 games on the road.
And I think we all agree the C's haven't even fully "figured it out" yet.
Yeah, I'm starting to think that this team is just that much better than the league.
Health health health health.....
Embiid's happy to allow that the Cs are his daddy:
https://www.si.com/nba/2023/11/16/joel-embiid-called-celtics-best-team-in-league-sounded-utterly-defeated
I had that in the back of my mind also, but they had the full complement for the Philly loss.
this sounds premature. they're possibly better this year than last, where they took us 7 games.
They also have the pieces to add a third "star" if that's what they want to do. Morey has maneuvered Philly into a pretty good spot.
Harris is playing some good ball so far so not sure they really need a 3rd star. Agree that they’re in a pretty good spot. Looking like a top 3 seed. Really question is can Embiid raise his game in the playoffs for once?
Bingo.
Can Embiid be healthy and at an MVP level in the playoffs? Or will he have some nagging injury, attempt to grift at every opportunity, and run out of gas when it counts?
TBH, until I see him actually rise up to the occasion, I will always have the Sixers a rung below the other title candidates
Philly has a dynamic due. Boston has waves of very good players, led by an alpha wing with a penchant for making dagger shots. That Boston without two top players who contribute 43 ppg can go into Philly and roll the Sixers should be shuddering to the rest of the league.
The squad in the Philly game, with a replacement level big and wing instead of JB and KP, would be a 55 win team, IMO. That squad as it played would be a playoff team for sure, and a tough out in the playoffs.
The squad in the Philly game, with a replacement level big and wing instead of JB and KP, would be a 55 win team, IMO. That squad as it played would be a playoff team for sure, and a tough out in the playoffs.
I keep coming back to the ball movement in the 4th quarter last night, in particular the play when Tatum zipped it inside to Horford who immediately redirected it to White for a wide open three. This just does not feel like the cheesedicking Celtics of years past.
Not to sound like I'm making excuses for Embiid, but if Maxey is your second star and Tobias Harris is your third star, you might not have enough.
Maxey is a 28/5/6 guy shooting 43% from downtown. Embiid is an MVP talent. Harris is never flashy but feels like a solid #3. I think the issue is more surrounding the rest of the group and Embiid not really seeming to have that “get on my back” mentality come playoff time.
I agree that their ceiling is lower than this Celtics team or Nuggets team fully healthy but I’d comfortably put them in the tier below.
I don't want to sound down on either guy. What I mean is that if Maxey is a fantastic offensive player, I'd want a better #3 than Harris. Harris provides some offense but is overrated defensively imo. But the second tier is correct. If I were a Sixers fan, I think that I'd be more concerned about the supporting cast being a bit of a hodgepodge, but who knows. Maybe they just need more time to gel.
He's another beneficiary of no-Harden. Harris has been one of the more underrated role players for awhile now. What he does defensively with his ability to defend multiple positions is priceless.
Is Harris that much worse than Aaron Gordon or Michael Porter Jr.? I think he at least holds his own. The difference is that Philly needs Embiid to be a Jokic-esque world beater and Maxey to be that Murray-esque offensive spark plug. The talent is there for both to happen. The biggest difference is that the rest of Philly’s supporting cast is just a gigantic bag of meh to me.
Boston has more elite talent, Denver is deeper, etc. Philly’s only chance is for Embiid to channel 94-95 Olajuwon, really. He can’t simply be good. He has to be great.
The 76ers are likely an interesting trade partner with someone like the Bulls. None of the fits are obvious but maybe a LaVine or DeMar can be additive.
Edit: I know he's an end of bench piece but Banton as a defensive specialist intrigues me. He did some good things out there except scoring. We are likely to get more of him going forward in certain matchups.
Edit: I know he's an end of bench piece but Banton as a defensive specialist intrigues me. He did some good things out there except scoring. We are likely to get more of him going forward in certain matchups.
He has to be great, deep into games, for every game in a 7-game series deep into the playoffs, on both sides of the ball.
I just don't think that's Embiid.
If you think of him as a role player, he's definitely underrated. He does a lot of shit well. As a #3 on a contender though, I'm not so sure about him.
No he definitely isn't. But there's two of them. If we consider it linearly, agreed as a #3, he's right there. But Denver makes up for not having a great #3 by having two #3s.
Agreed on the approach. Embiid has to carry his dominant self past the 82 and for the length of the tournament. Personally, I think that he has that in him. Giannis flamed out in the playoffs too, until he didn't. Embiid is that good, but he seems to run out of gas.
I've been trying to think on why a guy with his particular skillset doesn't work in the playoffs as well and can't come up with a reason besides "runs out of gas". Is it that a game with an inherently slower pace bogs down his offense? Is it that dialed-in defenses can thwart his inside outside game? I'm stumped. It could be as simple as getting him more regular season rest so that there's more tread on the tires come May/June.
A few ideas:
- Defense is generally up a level or two in the playoffs, from both an effort and a scheme perspective.
- Its the cumulative impact of a very long NBA season
- He's enormous. There's a lot of stress put on that body in a way there isn't for Tatum, for example
- they say that the whistle is tighter in the playoffs. For a guys who gets 1/3 of his production at the free-throw line, that's material. Then again, I don't ever remember thinking 'Embiid isn't really getting the whistle today' in the playoffs...
Let's see it in the playoffs. Offensively he's definitely better, and Jaylen is no prize defensively...but Maxey is brutal on that end. The Celtics were picking on him last night, that will increase exponentially as they go deep into the playoffs.
No one bothered to point it out in the series with Boston, and it was definitely behind Embiid underwhelming and Harden going back and forth from great to terrible, but Maxey's efficiency took a pretty big hit in that series. After shooting .481 from the field and .434 from 3 during the regular season, he dipped to .403 and .345 against Boston (and his FTR dropped from .233 to .169). His TS% (.522) was solidly behind both Embiid (.545) and Harden (.569). He excels in transition opportunities, which are harder to come by in the playoffs. Expectations were low for him given his age and the experience of guys around him, but that won't be the case going forward. I'm skeptical he can perform at anywhere near the same level when the games slow down and the competition level goes up.
You’re playing the same team seven times in a row.. in a scenario where you don’t have to rest players.. everyone is keying on him and everyone healthy is available. Just a few differences from the regular season.. it’s not just that he’s running out of gas.
I like Harris as a person and a player. He’d fit in nicely as a 7th man with the Celtics.
Good point. Like how the Sox were able to hit Mariano after facing him like 35 times in two years and multiple games in a row. I think that was part of Giannis's problem too. Can key on that guy, see what works, adjust, adjust again.
If Harris had gotten a Derrick White contract (4/73) as opposed to the deal he actually got (5/180), people would view him VERY differently. He's an excellent role player that got a contract meant for a perennial all-star. Not his fault, and he's played exactly as well as they could have expected (and he is available, very important for a team starring guys like Embiid, Simmons and Harden).
Did you by chance listen to Doc on Simmons pod yesterday? He had some real glowing things to say not only about Harris' play, but his personality as well. And his being ok with taking on the 4th man role, whatever it took for the team. It actually annoyed me because I love to rag on him to my Philly friends.
When I say role player I don't mean like a Pritchard or Kornet. He's fine as a #3 or #4 playing big minutes as a starting 4...he just isn't the alpha type to be a 1-2 guy but he scores nearly 20ppg without having to have plays ran for him but defense is his calling card in todays game where switchability is so important. He's been a real good player in this league but hated so much for his contract which never affected moves Philly had to make. I never got the disdain for him except by those with unrealistic expectations of him.
You can also change your defense every game to throw new looks at him.. and the amount of rest you get in the playoffs vs regular season means everyone probably feels as fresh as they have in months.. plus you don’t have to travel as much as usual. I think load management is also huge.. Giannis struggled to beat a Celts team resting basically all of their starters last year.. nobody is resting in the playoffs… unless you’re LeBron and you know you’re going to win game 7.
I didn't but my friends close to the Providence College program had glowing things to say about him when he'd fly in to see his brother play a few years ago. Super guy by all accounts.
Hasn’t he been pretty good for Philly? Just not quite up to what was expected or his contract.. but quietly productive.
I have to admit that I love listening to Doc on the Simmons pods and that I really respect his engagement with the Ringer given how much Simmons has criticized him over the years. I'm not sure I'd be secure enough to have a 2-hour public conversation with someone who treated me like Simmons treated Doc. Begrudging respect to him.
Yeah but from a sixer celtic rivalry perspective, the quietly productive was easy pickings!
Agreed. Im pretty over Simmons in general at this point, it's very guest dependent. And I've always thought Doc was pretty up front and a good listen.
I heard someone on NBA radio arguing that Alex Caruso (defense) would actually be the best current-Bull fit on the Sixers, assuming Oubre will be back healthy.
That seems like a fit too. Of course, right now I'd be assuming nothing about Kelly Oubre's availability for the rest of the season. He made it a few weeks with a new team, playing well and saying all the right things, before another Oubre thing happened. It likely wont be the last if past performance is any indicator.
That said, the 76ers with another piece probably doesn't concern the forum but they will be a formidable opponent for the C's from where I sit. I would love nothing more for them to stand pat before the deadline.