Heading into a Game 7 after being 3-1 up earlier in the series has us all in our feelings. The Boston Celtics have no place to hide on Saturday night.
We can talk about the adjustments Joe Mazzulla will need to make, the changes to players’ shot diet, or the way the big man rotation has been outmatched all series. Each of those talking points is valid and worth exploring.
Yet, the thing that’s stuck out to me the most is how the Philadelphia 76ers have gone from a team riding Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe early in the series to a unit built around Paul George and Joel Embiid over the past two games.
Their whole identity has flipped.
And with it, so has the series.
When it comes to Embiid, there’s some bias among Celtics fans. We’re used to seeing him gas out late in games. We’re used to his influence being marginalized by Al Horford and how well he matches up against the former MVP. Most importantly, we’re used to seeing his sad face as the Celtics send the Sixers packing.
This isn’t that version of Embiid.
Primarily because there’s no one on Boston’s roster capable of putting the clamps down in the way Horford did for years.
Nick Nurse will know this. That’s why I wasn’t shocked to see the Sixers isolate Embiid and Neemias Queta for the opening play of last night’s game.
The play was simple. Let’s break down why.
Philly has Maxey “Iverson Cut” with George popping after setting a screen, as that would tilt the Celtics’ defense to one side of the floor and leave no room for help defense due to one side having an empty corner.
From there, Embiid fronts the post and seals off Neemy. A Gator-style1 pass finds Embiid, and then it’s one-on-one for a quick bucket.
Neemy has endured a hellacious series thus far, littered with foul after foul. That’s not to place blame; it’s just the nature of being tasked with a bad matchup. Unfortunately, when Embiid can smell blood in the water, he becomes the best version of himself.
Not only is the former MVP finding success in terms of scoring, but he’s also operating as the Sixers’ offensive hub — forcing Boston into bad decisions and carving them open as they succumb to his gravity.
In the above clip, the Sixers have Embiid working on the low block. There’s an empty corner on the strong side, which means no defender to dig toward and pressure Embiid’s dribble.
With Tatum handling the threat of George, who has smartly positioned himself in a direct passing lane from Embiid, he’s not in a position to provide any help, either. So, when Kelly Oubre Jr’ cuts from the weakside wing, Jaylen Brown assumes Payton Pritchard is going to split his man, which leads Brown to jump into a double on Embiid.
Oubre Jr winds up cutting unchecked, allowing Embiid to pass over the double team for an uncontested bucket in the paint.
That’s not Celtics basketball.
Where’s the communication? The trust for guys to handle their matchups? The pressure of the live dribble to force tough decisions under pressure?
I get that Nikola Vucevic comes with his set of defensive limitations, but surely he should be trusted to bang down low with Embiid and provide enough resistance. Vucevic’s biggest defensive flaws come when guarding in space or dealing with downhill threats.
The need to send a double at the moment isn’t totally clear to me.
I wish I could say that was a one-time occurrence, too.
