The Sixers will face the Celtics in the first round of the 2020 NBA playoffs, kicking off August 17.
A wild and frankly disappointing season has culminated in a first round matchup with an old familiar. The Sixers will face the Celtics in round one, pitting Joel Embiid and Jayson Tatum — two of the Eastern Conference’s brightest young stars — against one another.
On paper, this is a solid matchup for the Sixers. Embiid can punish the Celtics’ lack of rim protection, and Al Horford has three years of experience to drop in Brett Brown’s lap. On the other hand, the Celtics have been the categorically better team all season and enter this series with more forward momentum. The absence of Ben Simmons will hurt Philadelphia.
The NBA has officially released schedules for every upcoming first round series. Here is how the Sixers-Celtics timeline will play out.
- Monday, Aug. 17 @ 6:30 PM E.T. (ESPN)
- Wednesday, Aug. 19 @ 6:30 PM E.T. (TNT)
- Friday, Aug. 21 @ 6:30 PM E.T. (TNT)
- Sunday, Aug. 23 @ 1:00 PM E.T. (ABC)
- Tuesday, Aug. 25 @ TBD
- Thursday, Aug. 27 @ TBD
- Saturday, Aug. 29 @TBD
You can watch ESPN, ABC, and NBA TV at Fubo.tv.
Of note is the time between contests. With no travel and a more restricted environment, the Sixers will have only one day of rest between games. The lack of travel balances out the hypothetical wear and tear, but Embiid could play up to seven games in 13 nights — and need to do so at a high level in order to win.
The Sixers’ success in this series will depend largely on Embiid’s performance. He has the matchup advantage, as Boston’s centers are ill-equipped to defend him. Neither Daniel Theis nor Enes Kanter have the strength or the rim protection skills to go blow-for-blow with the Sixers’ All-Star.
If Embiid can establish position in the post, use his strength to compromise the defense, and in turn generate open looks on the perimeter, Philadelphia will have a chance. If he’s off, however, the Sixers don’t have enough shot creation elsewhere to penetrate a solid Celtics defense.
You can expect a wave of predictions here at the site (and on the internet) in the coming days. I’m not a fan of Philadelphia’s chances — call me a skeptic — but the potential for victory does exist, and with Joel Embiid on the roster, one should expect a competitive series.