Once again, the 76ers are receiving a lot of early season buzz. Their star-studded starting lineup features two perennial MVP candidates and one of the NBA's brightest young stars. Over the last five years, they've been a dominant regular season force, and many prognosticators think they're poised to come out of the East.
But in order to accomplish that, they must advance past the Celtics. Boston trounced the 76ers by a score of 126-117 Tuesday, with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown each contributing 35 points. For all of Philadelphia's hype, the Celtics showed why they came within two games of winning the NBA Finals last season, while the Sixers fell to the Heat in the Semifinals.
On TNT's broadcast, Stan Van Gundy pointed out the disparity between the Celtics and 76ers when it comes to postseason success.
"We know James Harden, great individual player. Joel Embiid, great individual player," he said. "But compare these two teams. Philly has won more regular-season games over the last five years than Boston, but Philly has won four first-round series. That's it. Boston has been to the NBA Finals and two other times to the Eastern Conference Finals led by players who are a lot younger than Joel Embiid. Jayson Tatum, 24; Jaylen Brown, 26. These guys have gotten it done."
That's the truth. The Celtics swept the Sixers when they met in the 2020 playoff bubble, and have reached the Eastern Conference Finals in four of the last six seasons — predating Tatum's rookie campaign.
On paper, the Sixers may have the best starting lineup in the East, if not all of the NBA. Lineups featuring Harden, Embiid, 21-year-old Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris outscored opponents by 17.6 points per 100 possessions last season, and they added the rugged P.J. Tucker to the mix. Philly general manager Daryl Morey owns the fourth-highest winning percentage of all-time among executives.
But when the games matter the most, the Celtics have continually come out on top. Tuesday may have only been opening night, but it was another statement win.
