The 76ers have to thank the Celtics for game-changing Day 1 discovery
The Philadelphia 76ers will be making their debut tonight against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks. Unfortunately, they will need to open shop in hobbled fashion, as both Joel Embiid and Paul George are slated to sit this one out due to injuries.
While idle last night, the 76ers could learn a thing or two from the Boston Celtics, which just dismantled a fellow key rival in the New York Knicks. On right night, the defending champs trampled on their Atlantic Division nemesis with a record-tying night while also showing a Philly a blueprint they can follow this season.
The defending champs just showed the 76ers the way to go against a big rival
Usurping the Knicks will be crucial for the 76ers this season. Despite their horrible opening night performance, they are undoubtedly one of the most lethal teams in the association thanks to their talent at every position on both ends of the court.
However, the Celtics certainly showed the 76ers the way to go against New York.
As expected, Karl-Anthony Towns is far from the same defensive jolt as Mitchell Robinson. Boston repeatedly attacked the All-Star on defense, exploiting his poor defense to generate pace and space for kick-out actions and mismatches in the perimeter en route to an NBA-record-tying 29 triples.
Naturally, that level of shot-making cannot be reliably flagged down as a blueprint, but exploiting Towns will be front and center against the Knicks, especially for the 76ers which employ Joel Embiid, a player who can dismantle him one-on-one. Tyrese Maxey should also be able to toy with him in pick-and-roll actions.
Another facet from the Knicks that the Celtics exposed is their inherent lack of height on the wings. New York trots out defensive-minded wings who can still be overpowered by sheer ranginess, something the 76ers have an abundance of thanks to a guy named Paul George who can just get shots up over OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges.
There’s also that thing with Bridges making the mind-numbing decision to change his shot mechanics, which completely ruined his rhythm save for a quick dash of shot-making during the third quarter.
With talent at an all-time high in the NBA, the Philadelphia 76ers have to ace their matchups and get more strategic, especially against their biggest rivals. Thankfully, they didn’t even need to get into the hardwood to see how they can make a nemesis stumble big time when they meet this season.