If the Boston Celtics were as consistent with their shooting as they are with their postgame oratory, their opening-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers would have been over days ago.<\/p>\n
Take, for instance, an observation Jaylen Brown made about the 76ers late Thursday night, after Boston\u2019s 106-93 loss in Game 6 at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philly. \u201cTheir comfort level is higher right now,\u201d Brown said. \u201cTheir confidence is high right now. They\u2019ve got a different swag to them, and we\u2019ve gotta take that (away).\u201d<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s rewind the tape a little more, and to something Brown said after Joel Embiid scored 33 points in the 76ers\u2019 113-97 victory over the Celtics in Game 5 at TD Garden. \u201cYeah, I feel like he got too many easy baskets,\u201d Brown said. \u201cWe need to make him work. It\u2019s just too easy for him. Even though we want to trust our guys to guard certain aspects, we have to make it a little tougher.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now then, let\u2019s rewind the tape just once more, to the aftermath of Game 2, in which rookie VJ Edgecombe\u2019s 30 points led the way in the 76ers\u2019 111-97 victory at the Garden. \u201cI thought Edgecombe was just too comfortable,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
No attempt is being made here to pin all of this on Brown. But he\u2019s a team leader, and his words therefore have weight. And considering the Celtics face elimination in Saturday night\u2019s deciding Game 7 in Boston, the weight of those words could hang in the air for a long, long time. That is, if the Celtics lose.<\/p>\n
If it were a simple matter of seeing to it that the 76ers aren\u2019t so \u201ccomfortable,\u201d the Celtics could get, you know, more physical. They could play the role of the 1970s Big, Bad Bruins, and the 76ers could fight back in the spirit of Philly\u2019s 1970s Broad Street Bullies, and oh man, would that be fun. But here in the real world, physicality, or lack thereof, isn\u2019t a one-size-fits-all explanation as to why this series is tied 3-3 \u2014 unless playing harder is part of being more physical. And make no mistake: The 76ers are playing harder. It was an absolute shocker Thursday night, when, with 10:24 remaining in the fourth quarter, Boston trailing 88-65, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla pulled his starters.<\/p>\n
Boston\u2019s bench cut Philly\u2019s lead to 12, but it wasn\u2019t enough for Mazzulla to reignite the burners to his \u201cA\u201d team. That, right there, is a sign that what\u2019s ailing the Celtics is less about looking at Philly\u2019s comfort level and more about looking in the mirror.<\/p>\n