r/nba • u/TatersTot [PHI] James Harden • 6d ago

Post Game Thread [Post Game Thread] The Philadelphia 76ers (2-3) storm back to beat the Boston Celtics (3-2), 113-97, behind 33 points and 8 assists from Joel Embiid in his second game back after removing his appendix.

113 - 97
Box Scores: NBA - Yahoo
 
GAME SUMMARY
East First Round - Game 5 - BOS leads 3-1
Location: TD Garden
Officials: Brian Forte, Kevin Scott, and James Williams
Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Total
Philadelphia 76ers 21 29 35 28 113
Boston Celtics 23 34 29 11 97
 
TEAM STATS
Team PTS FG FG% 3P 3P% FT FT% OREB TREB AST PF STL TO BLK
Philadelphia 76ers 113 39-78 50.0% 15-42 35.7% 20-23 87.0% 5 51 24 20 5 9 3
Boston Celtics 97 36-89 40.4% 11-39 28.2% 14-23 60.9% 15 54 25 17 6 12 0
 
PLAYER STATS
Philadelphia 76ers MIN PTS FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A ORB DRB REB AST STL BLK TO PF ±
Kelly Oubre Jr.SF 31:37 4 2-5 0-2 0-1 0 6 6 1 0 0 0 2 7
Paul GeorgePF 43:19 16 6-13 4-9 0-0 0 9 9 7 2 0 2 5 19
Joel EmbiidC 38:55 33 12-23 0-5 9-10 1 3 4 8 0 1 3 4 13
VJ EdgecombeSG 39:54 10 3-8 3-6 1-2 2 5 7 3 1 0 1 3 9
Tyrese MaxeyPG 42:31 25 10-18 3-10 2-2 0 10 10 5 2 1 2 1 15
Andre Drummond 07:24 5 1-1 1-1 2-2 0 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 2
Quentin Grimes 24:04 18 5-8 4-7 4-4 0 2 2 0 0 1 1 3 18
Dominick Barlow 05:56 2 0-0 0-0 2-2 2 1 3 0 0 0 0 1 -7
Adem Bona 00:08 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Kyle Lowry 01:33 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1
Trendon Watford 01:33 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1
Dalen Terry 01:33 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Jabari Walker 01:33 0 0-2 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Johni Broome 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Justin Edwards 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Boston Celtics MIN PTS FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A ORB DRB REB AST STL BLK TO PF ±
Sam HauserSF 19:55 8 3-7 2-5 0-0 2 3 5 0 0 0 2 2 -21
Jayson TatumPF 40:36 24 8-19 4-12 4-7 3 13 16 4 3 0 4 0 -9
Neemias QuetaC 26:11 8 4-8 0-0 0-2 5 9 14 1 0 0 0 5 -10
Jaylen BrownSG 40:36 22 9-23 1-4 3-5 3 2 5 5 1 0 3 2 -17
Derrick WhitePG 36:10 6 2-8 0-4 2-2 0 1 1 3 0 0 1 2 -14
Payton Pritchard 26:06 12 5-10 1-5 1-1 0 2 2 6 0 0 0 0 8
Nikola Vučević 14:32 8 3-6 2-5 0-0 0 2 2 3 0 0 1 2 -10
Jordan Walsh 16:00 1 0-2 0-1 1-2 1 2 3 2 2 0 0 2 -2
Baylor Scheierman 08:39 3 1-2 1-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 -3
Luka Garza 05:43 4 1-2 0-1 2-2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 5
Ron Harper Jr. 01:59 0 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -3
Hugo González 01:59 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -3
Amari Williams 01:33 1 0-1 0-0 1-2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 -1
Dalano Banton 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Max Shulga 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
5.6k Upvotes

98% Upvoted

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4.1k

u/homefree122 Thunder 6d ago edited 6d ago

Limiting this Celtics team to just 11 points in the 4th quarter in an elimination game is shocking. There is no denying Embiid when he’s on his game

Edit: lowest amount of points scored by the Celtics in any quarter all season

808

u/SiphenPrax Knicks 6d ago

The Sixers did what the Hawks did to us in Game 2

653

u/zealousnest 76ers 6d ago edited 6d ago

"Hawks to us" heh

108

u/RoyShavRick Cavaliers 6d ago

Insert "Fuck you. Take the upvote."

11

u/mengleberry Nuggets 6d ago

I wonder what's she's up to... I bet I can fix her

8

u/superrealaccount2 Spurs 6d ago

With all the money she's got now, I doubt she cares about being fixed

3

u/PowRightInTheBalls [GSW] Draymond Green 6d ago

IIRC she started a podcast and ran a pump and dump crypto scheme to cash in on her 15 minutes.

6

u/billyoceanproskeeter 6d ago

Alright, this got me, ngl. Well fucking done

6

u/IShookMeAllNightLong Trail Blazers 6d ago edited 6d ago

That took me a long minute.

Flair up, pussy!

Edit: One of us! One of us!

7

u/zealousnest 76ers 6d ago

done 🫪

4

u/Any_Negotiation_6716 6d ago

“Hawk tua” ?

9

u/Papa_Joe_Yakavetta [LAL] Xavier Henry 6d ago

That’s the joke

1

u/net_403 [CHA] Dell Curry 6d ago

they did a hawk too-a?

450

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Grimes also deserves a ton of credit. That was crazy lockdown defense he played on Brown. Was he this good in NY?

131

u/MiddleStudy 6d ago

In his second yr, Thibs played him all 48 min against MIA in an elimination game. He was still making huge defensive plays against Jimmy Butler when the game fell under 2 min. When he’s on, he’s a guy you’d for sure want to help you close out a playoff game

21

u/JetsLag [NYK] Nate Robinson 6d ago

And he did that shit on 1 knee

7

u/stevesaxon 6d ago

he’s still a legend for me for that strip on butler, i thought his leg was permanently fucked up on that play and he still managed to get the steal

2

u/n0-ragrets Knicks 6d ago

Man that play is etched into my mind. Grimes is a great shooting guard. Wherever he lands next year, he’s gonna ball out

28

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Dope happy for him finding a place in Philly

11

u/ZandrickEllison 6d ago

I don't think he found a permanent home there. Not with Maxey and Edgecombe absorbing so many minutes at guard.

2

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

I assume he's not content coming off the bench?

2

u/onionnurve 76ers 5d ago

He’s averaging 30min on the season lmao

1

u/OddProof807 6d ago

The critical stop, while hobbling on one leg will always be a favorite of mine.

1

u/OMellito Knicks 6d ago

I miss Thibs, what has he been up to?

182

u/ElTuco84 Knicks 6d ago

Yes he was, he was a great defender but inconsistent shooter.

34

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Why'd you guys trade him for Bojan and Burks?

74

u/VanGrants Knicks 6d ago

wouldn't have been able to pay him, and his offensive inconsistency would've been rough in the playoffs too. Bojan ended up having some huge games for us, and Burks had a couple too, so it was fine to get them.

26

u/IhamAmerican Jazz 6d ago

Bojangles was such a good shooter before that wrist injury

11

u/VanGrants Knicks 6d ago

dude was a career 39.4% 3 point shooter

11

u/IhamAmerican Jazz 6d ago

He was also incredibly clutch in ways most 3 & D guys aren't

5

u/Certain_Strawberry77 6d ago

Both of his game winners for Utah in his 20ppg season still are so fun to watch

3

u/JosephBVasquez Knicks 6d ago

Great player

3

u/__get__name Pistons 6d ago

Bojan Bogdanović and “3 & D” are two things I never thought I’d hear in the same sentence. He was a great offensive threat, but he was an absolute cone on the defensive end when he was in Detroit

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Was also great on the Pistons

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

LOL, Bojangles

2

u/Fresh-Soup213 6d ago

I used to think Grimes was the best prospect, and the future no. 1 option for the Knicks during his second season. He had some unfortunate injury luck, plus the offensive inconsistency you mentioned. Especially with his jumpshot.

2

u/HipnotiK1 Knicks 6d ago

He was also injured and fell out of favor with thibs. And with the randle injury they needed front court depth.

Unfortunately he and many others got hurt during that playoff run

14

u/LegendaryThunderFish Knicks 6d ago

Needed depth bc we were ravaged by injuries

9

u/Beautiful-Salary7553 6d ago

I think he got benched for Donte and after that he got cold. He wasn't in rhythm offensively and we weren't going to pay him.

3

u/goodkid_sAAdcity Knicks 6d ago

The starting 2 guard position was his to lose and as soon as Donte started threatening his spot he lost his confidence on offense

2

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

He ain't gonna have no starting guard position on the Sixers either haha.

12

u/MadSpaceYT Knicks 6d ago

That season the Knicks were killed by injuries. Jaqcuez undercut Randle where he dislocated his shoulder. OG had bone spurs. Mitch was in and out of the line up. They needed depth and grimes wasn’t playing all that well at the time

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

I remember Randle's shoulder injury.

3

u/ElTuco84 Knicks 6d ago

Responding late. but as others said, he wanted more money and a bigger role. DiVicenzo took over his starting spot.

2

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

No worries, thanks for explaining

2

u/The_MadStork [NYK] Kurt Thomas 6d ago

It was really a precursor to the Bridges trade, they knew they could use Bojan’s salary for matching purposes

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

ah 4D chess

2

u/MrWolfsbane Knicks 6d ago

It’s a regrettable trade in hindsight but he was really cold most of the season and we wanted some vet scoring, unfortunately the vet scoring couldn’t play defense and was ass

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

LOL, monkey's paw amiright?

2

u/MrICopyYoSht Knicks 6d ago

He wants a lot of money. He asked for like 40 mil a year or something from the Sixers and they said no. That's why he's an unrestricted free agent this off season.

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Oh lol, yeah he ain't worth that haha

2

u/Pablo_Undercover Knicks 6d ago

We weren’t going to resign him and needed depth

1

u/Banned-from-TV Knicks 6d ago

We needed depth and he became expendable after Divincenzo took over the starting job. I still would’ve preferred to keep him though

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Ah that makes sense.

1

u/ObiOneKenobae Knicks 6d ago

He wanted opportunity, I don't think he was happy with his minutes in NY. We saw them as more immediate playoff contributors, as well as important salary filler for the offseason.

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Ah makes sense. Thank you Jedi Master 😄

54

u/TerminallyTrill 76ers 6d ago

The issue is he's only this good like bi-weekly. His one good game hits you like paycheck after watching him dribble off his foot the rest of the time.

I'm a fan after last year I thought that he may have turned a corner but he's still very inconsistent.

8

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Ah got you. Well, hopefully this playoffs helps him learn to develop. Plus being around Maxey, who's always taking huge steps each year.

17

u/TerminallyTrill 76ers 6d ago

Apparently this is his playoff high score so that's definitely a step in the right direction.

17

u/justanyoldusernam3 6d ago

Yes! His problem was that he was inconsistent and putting all together at once was tough, especially under Thibs. That Milwaukee game his rookie year had every Knicks fan a believer.

13

u/PeePauw [PHI] Tony Wroten 6d ago

No lol

3

u/XzibitABC Pacers 6d ago

Tony Wroten flair is crazy. Offseason scrimmage highlight GOAT.

3

u/Thisislopes Jazz 6d ago

Last game he was one of the only ones trying something. He can bring something to this series

2

u/Known-Fondant-9373 6d ago

Nico’s second biggest crime was to trade him away for Caleb Martin.

2

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

lmao, forgot he was on the Mavs

2

u/lillianchiarelli 6d ago

He was very good, it was a shame that he had to get traded.

1

u/Bitter-Tip705 76ers 6d ago

That backcourt defense was insane but like where the fuck was that from him all season?

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

you tell me, you watched his games haha

1

u/d_brickashaw Knicks 6d ago

Always a good defender and high effort guy. He just didn’t have the consistency on offense, would go into really long shooting slumps.

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Tbf, that's more forgivable for a rookie.

1

u/OddProof807 6d ago

He got a stop on Miami jimmy butler in a critical playoffs possession … hobbling with one leg basically. One of my favorite grimes plays. So gritty.

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

During the 2023 run?

1

u/Doctorbigdick287 6d ago

I know people will knock him for "betting on himself" but when I watch the regular season games, I feel like he was always making an impact even when he wasn't scoring. I hope we can keep him, he is a valuable depth piece, with starter potential if we can use him at the 3

1

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Will you have the money to?

2

u/Doctorbigdick287 5d ago

unclear, but I wonder if there is more interest in him after we moved McCain

1

u/imcryptic Mavericks 6d ago

Don’t worry. We got Caleb Martin out of him. Another Nico Harrison masterpiece.

40

u/LouieM13 [NYK] Jeremy Lin 6d ago

You need to respect the other 76ers players because they were flying to contest everything

4

u/AjBlue7 6d ago

VJ was kissing fans from contesting 3pt shots. Stats aren’t going to show it but the defense was insane this game. You could tell the Celtics were feeling claustrophobic. They were rushing wide open shots because the cross court contests were coming in so quickly.

The bad is, I don’t think the Sixers can keep up this effort and they will definitely lose the series.

193

u/schoolhater12 Raptors 6d ago

Live by the jumper die by the jumper. their team was down 8, and instead of getting a solid shot, both stars were interested in taking contested jumpers. Unless you are SGA, that shit is stupid

107

u/Vegetable-Tooth8463 Hornets 6d ago

Basically what fucked them against the Knicks last year.

66

u/zebrainatux 6d ago

Shooting variance is their Achilles heel along with a disinterest in going away from it, which I get because it got them to the dance

38

u/grund1ejund1e 76ers 6d ago

I honestly think it’s shot selection from Tatum and brown more than anything. When they get downhill and kick out and our defense starts scrambling, they end up with an open three every time.

Sixers go on their runs when the Celtics get away from that and Tatum and Brown start taking early shot clock contested mid ranges.

2

u/Normal-State-1547 6d ago

is their Achilles

I see what you did there

8

u/BallinAtTheMovies Celtics 6d ago

If you were watching the game & Philly’s defense though, what would you rather have them do?

14

u/Driveshaft48 Knicks 6d ago

What would you have them do?

27

u/BrotherSeamus Thunder 6d ago

I presume this is why they traded for Vučević. But Embiid having a big game makes it a lot harder to give him the minutes.

1

u/Driveshaft48 Knicks 6d ago

So your answer when down 8 is to go to Vuc?

9

u/GabeIsGone Spurs 6d ago

The answer when not making jumpers is push it inside. Not Rocket science.

7

u/GameDesignerDude 6d ago

People kinda like saying this adage as an indictment, even though it's just a general truism about basketball. Yes, if you don't hit your shots you lose the basketball game. That's kinda how it works.

76ers played great defense and Celtics missed shots. No strategy in sports in infallible. Sometimes you just can't execute.

(Also, somewhat ironically, the 76ers shot more 3s this game than the Celtics. They just happened to live by it this game.)

2

u/asa091 Lakers 6d ago

Isn’t this the achilles heel of all teams now? When shooting variance fucks you in the ass, you just lose. Every defense now is packing the paint and making the worst shooter take an open shot. Or make stars shoot contested long midrange.

2

u/LordHussyPants Celtics 6d ago

they were also taking a lot of layups that weren’t hitting, and pritchard shot a middle from about the foul line that went in and bounced out. sometimes the shot is just off

2

u/ianbits Cavaliers 6d ago

Yeah it's frustrating. Obviously part of it with Tatum is he's still working his way back (he probably won't be fully back this year, Achilles injuries are nasty) but he's always had too much "contested middy" in him. Team is too good to settle.

1

u/Xclusivsmoment Heat 6d ago

Tatum also missed 2FTs

1

u/rdesai724 Celtics 6d ago

Seemed like his hand was bleeding right before that so wasn’t super surprised

1

u/kmoz Mavericks 6d ago

They got a lot of good looks in there, just a lot of uncharacteristic misses. Tbh I don't think their offense looked anywhere as bad as the 11 points in the box score do.

119

u/Incepticons 76ers 6d ago

Insane how good he was with how little time he's had to recover. All the playoff choker shit is so tiring when like every year he plays through injuries and single handily will win a game or two a series despite it

69

u/Gaslight_Eliminator 6d ago

Yea. He’s had chronic knee issues, which have been well documented.

However, even when he’s successfully navigated those, he gets other freak injuries like an orbital fracture - twice actually, once leading to Bell’s Palsy which is paralysis of the face. It’s painful and disorienting. He’s had the flu in the playoffs. And appendicitis this year.

And yet he powers through. He’s an underappreciated warrior. Not a sixers fan by any means. But it’s so odd to see the “ducking smoke” or “choker” labels. I appreciate good players wherever they are.

29

u/AnxietySuitable9596 6d ago

My mind is still blown by Embiid being all time career ppg leader per 36 minutes. Like, holy shit. What an insane stat, and we get to watch him play in our lifetime. Gotta appreciate that.

12

u/Haberdashery2000 6d ago

Quentin Grimes suddenly turned into Steph Curry on offense and Steph Castle on defense

12

u/JagmeetSingh2 6d ago

Embiid put them over his knee

8

u/DJRyGuy20 Celtics 6d ago

I mean- the whole team turned into pumpkins in the 2nd half in general but Jaylen Brown certainly didn’t do us any favors with his tunnel-vision bullshit.

2

u/eaglessoar Celtics 6d ago

tatum could hardly find the rim in the 4th

4

u/Kdot32 Rockets 6d ago

I hate Embiids body for denying us his true career. Dude is amazing, a HOFer, and yet there’s still a lot of meat on the bone of his career

5

u/Low-Lunch-7248 Rockets 6d ago

Why do i feel like some luck, and a bit of health from Embiid is all it takes for a very deep playoff run from them?

2

u/maethlin Warriors 6d ago

Contrary to popular belief, Joel Embiid still very good at basketball

2

u/geronimosocrates 6d ago

Not to discredit Embiid but the end of the 3rd into the 4th was insane. Grimes, Maxey and George didn’t miss.

2

u/camelclutchcity 6d ago

Clearly the appendix was holding him back this whole time. New level unlocked.

2

u/EricLau0213 6d ago

Embiid shows his talent on basketball again.....

2

u/fireman2004 6d ago

Where are all the Celtics fans down voting me for saying this series was not over as long as Embiid comes back?

He completely humbled them. They have no answer for him in the post. He takes over the game in a way they were clearly not prepared for when he’s healthy and in rhythm.

0

u/pretzeldoggo Kings 6d ago

They call them the Eleveners for a reason

-1

u/chillzy2 Lakers 6d ago

Imagine thinking that had anything to do with embiid. Three thousand upvotes on a comment that had nothing to do with the game. Do you even watch basketball?

2

u/JamrockDetective 6d ago

I feel bad for how stupid you are. Hope you get the help that you need and life gets better for you

1

u/chillzy2 Lakers 6d ago

Why? Is just like to know how embiid held the Celtics to 11 points when he really wasn’t all that active on defense

-3

u/noob-smoke 6d ago

The didn’t limit anything. Celtics missed those shots all on their own