Banner Town Breakdown: Celtics vs. 76ers Round One Game One (August 17, 2020)
The Celtics began their first round series against the Philadelphia 76ers. Game one was a completely roller coaster of emotions, and there are definitely both positives and negatives to take away from this one.
First of all, Joel Embiid (26 points, 16 rebounds) is an absolute monster. The Celtics did a decent job of containing him, but overall it seems like he should be able to have his way in the post. Daniel Theis (9 points) does an okay job of staying in front of him and all, but overall it’s tough to stop him when he’s backing up in the post. Don’t even get me started on the threes he made. If he can do that on a consistent basis he will be a whole new level of scary.
Outside of Embiid, it was sort of a hodgepodge of production from the Sixers. Josh Richardson (18 points, 6 rebounds) played well, Shake Milton (13 points) looked decent, and Alec Burks (18 points, 6 rebounds) put in a solid performance. Tobias Harris (15 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists) was good, too, but I don’t think he took enough shots early on for what Philly should be expecting from him. He ended up taking 15 shots, but by the time he got more looks he had cooled down and wasn’t in a rhythm anymore.
Boston did a pretty good job of slowing down Embiid. Like I said before, Embiid will always get his buckets, but as a whole Boston did well. Just like I predicted, the key to containing Embiid was all about defense by committee. Theis would slow him down long enough for another defender to come over and force Embiid to either turn the ball over, force a bad shot, or make a bad pass. It worked to near perfection and was a big reason why the Celtics ended up forcing so many turnovers, with five of them coming from Embiid alone.
Overall, the Celtics’ defense looked super solid throughout the whole game. The Sixers made some tough shots, but overall I have very little complaints about the defense the C’s played. They were quick, energized, and constantly in the passing lanes tallying a whopping 12 steals. This was the one constant thing I was happy with throughout the game - Boston’s energy on the defensive end.
Also, before you mention the 13-0 Philadelphia run to end the third quarter, I blame that more on a shaky Celtics offense rather than what some may call a lackluster Celtics defense. I thought the defense was just fine throughout this one.
Speaking of Boston’s offense, things were very here or there. Jayson Tatum (32 points, 13 rebounds, 3 blocks) was spectacular and even had 15 points in the second quarter alone. Jaylen Brown (29 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals) also had a super solid game and was on absolute fire from behind the three point line (5-8 from three). Tatum kept the Celtics in the game early, and Brown helped ensure that they stayed there late in the game. Tatum was the spark. Brown was the reassurance (15 points in the fourth quarter). Both deserve all praise after their performances. Outside of that, however, the offense looked sort of shaky for Boston.
Kemba Walker (19 points, 5 assists) and Gordon Hayward (12 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals), who unfortunately left the game with an apparent ankle injury, played fine, but things just looked off. The Celtics missed way too many seemingly easy chances at the rim, and there were certain points where the offense just seemed rushed. Not enough ball movement and a little too much iso ball for my taste. (Aside from Tatum who could do absolutely no wrong.)
Outside of the Celtics’ four horsemen, though, no one was able to score in the double digits. Marcus Smart (2 points, 2 steals) even went 0-5 from the field in a rough offensive performance, but his defense more than makes up for that.
The only other players who I was mildly impressed with were Enes Kanter (0 points, 4 rebounds) and Robert Williams (2 points, 6 rebounds). Kanter came up with some clutch offensive rebounds and Williams brought some much needed energy to the floor.
In the end, things were way too close for comfort. The fourth quarter was looking good for the Celtics at one point, but in classic Celtics fashion they let Philly back in it. The final couple minutes of the game ended up being full of questionable fouls for both teams. It led to a lot of free throws and a lot of close calls for Boston.
The Celtics eventually got the win on the coattails of Tatum and Brown, as well as some really solid defense. I wish they didn’t give me a near heart attack down the stretch, but take the good with the bad I suppose. At least they got the 109-101 win, as well as a 1-0 lead in the series.
Make sure to catch game two of the Celtics’ first round matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday, August 19 at 6:30PM.
