76ers (1-3) at Celtics (3-1) Round 1 Game 5 4/28/26

[tenn_smoothie]

It?s been a while since I visited the game thread in the post-season. What a bunch of whiners. People
Calling out Joe and pining for Ime. 🤣 It?s a sport of randomness. The better team doesn?t win every game. 2008 team was taken to 7 games by the 40-42 Hawks.

Nonsensical comparison. That 2008 team was in their initial playoff series as a group. They struggled some in the road games vs Atlanta, but blew them out all four home games. Then they proceeded to get better with every series, finishing off the two strongest opponents in 6 games, including huge clutch road wins and a overwhelming blowout of the Lakers in the finals. By the end of the playoffs, they were overpowering.

I'm not wanting a return of Ime, though I miss his more demanding style. His offense is even worse than Joe's.

[Who]

The offense was terrible in the 2nd half.

It was like they had no idea where their shot attempts were going to come from. Too much one-on-one by Tatum & Jaylen. Too many contested shots off the dribble. Almost everything on the perimeter.

I do not understand why this team doesn't look for Vucevic and Garza more offensively. Both are skilled offensive players. You can find them 10-15 feet from the basket for short shots or rolling to the rim. Little transition offense for paint finishes either. It made the team too reliant on outside shooting + one-on-one drives from the Jays. Share the wealth. Get your bigs the ball. Queta a good rim runner as well.

None of the role players on the perimeter showed up on offense. Actually Pritchard was fine. D White was a no-show again. 6pts 3ast. Hauser quiet with 8pts. J Walsh 1pt in 15min. Baylor 3pts. A total of 18pts from two starters and two of the three perimeter bench players. The team was 6-23 on three pointers outside of the Jays. Just not enough help tonight.

On nights like this where the perimeter guys are struggling, transition offense + feeding the bigs for shorter shots helps. Gotta look to Vooch and Garza more when they are on the floor. Get them more involved.

[SparzWizard]

Congrats to Nick Nurse outcoaching Joe Mazz in all facets of tonight's game.

Idk why Sam Hauser started and played for almost 20 minutes. Derrick White, 36 minutes with only 6 points to muster. If that's the production he's gonna give, then just give me back Marcus Smart...at least he's been having a blast lately making game-saving plays and hustling and all. Payton Pritchard should be starting.

Don't know why the substitution of Garza for Vuc once Embiid came back in. Joe is playing scared.

[celticinorlando]

They really did not make Embiid work on defense tonight. Boston can get to the rim but resfuses to do so.

[tenn_smoothie]

fire mazzulla now.  get a coach with a INSIDE GAME. this clown is wasting our window.

we won in spite of him.

he blew it in 2023 and underachieved and fell apart last year.

Wasting this championship-caliber talent because of an incompetent coach is the most painful part of this.

[celticinorlando]

Congrats to Nick Nurse outcoaching Joe Mazz in all facets of tonight's game.

Idk why Sam Hauser started and played for almost 20 minutes. Derrick White, 36 minutes with only 6 points to muster. If that's the production he's gonna give, then just give me back Marcus Smart...at least he's been having a blast lately making game-saving plays and hustling and all. Payton Pritchard should be starting.

Don't know why the substitution of Garza for Vuc once Embiid came back in. Joe is playing scared.

I would start Baylor and PP. Bring Sam and White off the bench.

[Boston Garden Leprechaun]

fire mazzulla now.  get a coach with a INSIDE GAME. this clown is wasting our window.

we won in spite of him.

he blew it in 2023 and underachieved and fell apart last year.

Wasting this championship-caliber talent because of an incompetent coach is the most painful part of this.

yes sir!

[SparzWizard]

Just so we remember recent history...

Celtics have lost 4 of their last 6 home playoff games.

2025 Game 1, Game 2
2026 Game 2, Game 5

What a disaster

[smicker16]

This is why all the talk of Embiid making the Sixers work after the last game was not realistic. He absolutely makes them better and now the trio of Embiid, Maxey and George is comparable to Tatum, Brown and White. Would still give the Cs the edge but it is fairly close.

In the regular season you can get by with lesser talent but that does not work as well in the playoffs. It is why those Hawks and Raptors teams in the 2010s always struggled come playoff time. This is where we are now missing Jrue, Horford, healthy KP.

This team can still make a run in the East because the conference is weak but the Knicks will continue to be a bad matchup for us unfortunately. We basically have to have 4 games every series where we outshoot the other teams from 3. I know everyone hates that but it is our only way with the way the team is talent wise sadly I believe.

[ScoobyDoo]

I said this in another thread and lots of people disagreed. But in the Tatum/Brown era both Tatum and Brown go one on one way too often and either end up with crappy fadeaway jumpers or threes (Tatum), or dribble into turnovers (Brown), he also takes a lot of crappy shots off the dribble.

Additionally they are massive choke artists - they have a unique ability to turn what should be a four game sweep into a seven game war. They?ve done it over and over and over again. They did it under Stevens and they?re doing it under Mazzola.

It starts and ends with Tatum and Brown - as a former PG you simply have to be able to make the right decisions without the coaching having to spine feed you on every play.

The game gets tight and then they get tight and every to jacking up crappy threes off one on one dribble creation. They?re BBIQ door knobs.

It?s the reason they have the most playoff wins and playoff series wins during their run but the fewest titles. They have the most playoff wins because they couldn?t close a door if their life depended on it.

They do subscribe to Zig Ziglar?s ABC sales strategy, but instead of ?Always Be Closing?, for Tatum and Brown it?s ?Always Be Choking?. When they won game 4 in Philly, I called my Sixers friend and said ?congratulations on your game five win in Boston because I knew there was. O possible way Tatum and Brown could man up, draw a line in the sand, get I to a figurative basketball fist fight and shove it down The Sixers throat. It?s not who they are. That?s for guys with last names like Bird, Jordan, Bryant, Magic etc.

I?d probably seat Pritchard and I?d use Garza on Embiid until he fouled out - he?s our strongest big man - and unlike Tatum and Brown he?s willing to get his nose very dirty. Vicevic offers zero resistance.

[Boston Garden Leprechaun]

fire joe. package brown and others and go get GIANNIS

we need a INSIDE PRESENCE

keep tatum.

[0003323344]

This one's going 7. Nobody is beating OKC anyway except maybe SA, you know the NBA wants SA back in the finals with Wemby.

[0003323344]

fire joe. package brown and others and go get GIANNIS

we need a INSIDE PRESENCE

keep tatum.

Joe coached them to 56 wins without Tatum for most of the year. I don't know that I'd fire Joe. Brown and Tatum are back doing what they do best playing down to an interior team and sharing hero ball duties.

[ScoobyDoo]

I meant to say I?d probably start Pritchard. He helps direct an otherwise rudderless offense when hems in there.

Lastly, if Tatum and Brown played with the same relentless effort, grit and determination as Pritchard did they?d have more conference championships and at least one more title. But again, when things get tight if the threes they jack up aren?t going on they become wallflowers and surrender. And what was with taking everyone out with two minutes to go in a 10 point game. Talk about surrendering?

Finally, I meant that the reason Tatum and Brown have more playoff wins than any other duo during their time is because they turn every series into seven games instead of what often times should be four of five game series.

[ScoobyDoo]

If these guys Donny make the finals this year, and maybe even if they don?t win it all, I might strongly considering doing what was said above, trading one of them for Giannis. I?d probably try to get Flagg first though.