The Philadelphia 76ers tied their series up 1-1 in their Game 2 victory over the Boston Celtics, and they will head home for what is now a best-of-five series. But that might not be a good thing.
In the regular season, the Celtics were 26-15 on the road (including 1-1 in Philadelphia). Only the Oklahoma City Thunder (30-10), San Antonio Spurs (29-12), and Detroit Pistons (28-13) had better such records than Boston. Additionally, this set a franchise record (which is obviously saying something considering how decorated the Celtics franchise is).
The 76ers took Game 2 and now have some momentum going in their direction. But just because they're on their way back home for the next two games doesn't mean they should feel comfortable just yet.
The Celtics' road success could be troubling for the 76ers
Game 2 wasn't a great indication of what makes the Celtics so great. They scored just 97 points (their lowest since scoring 89 against the Charlotte Hornets on Mar. 4, their last game before Jayson Tatum returned from his Achilles injury), and shot just 39.3% from the field and 26% from beyond the arc.
Furthermore, outside of Tatum (19) and Jaylen Brown (36), nobody on the Celtics' roster scored in double digits. This includes Derrick White, whose three-point inefficiencies continue to be a problem for them.
Boston didn't look like the same team that secured the No. 2 seed in the East and won 56 games during the regular season. Needless to say, nobody should expect a repeat performance out of them, and that especially includes the 76ers, who will look to take care of their home court.
Unfortunately for the 76ers, they were just 23-18 at home in the regular season. For context, the Orlando Magic (25-15), Miami Heat (26-15), Portland Trail Blazers (24-17), and Phoenix Suns (25-16) had better records at home than Philadelphia did.
This, combined with the Celtics' success on the road this season, could be a big problem for the 76ers, who are looking to pull off the upset this series. However, if they can hold their own at home (at least split Games 3 and 4), that would be a huge confidence boost and could give the team and fanbase a genuine reason to believe they can advance to the second round of the playoffs.
A series win is still unlikely for Philadelphia, but if Game 2 was any indication, maybe the team needs a bit more respect moving forward.
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