NBA 2022/23, on Monday, 15.05.2023
It will be extremely exciting again. Because in the 2nd round of the NBA play-offs the next deciding game will take place on Sunday night – between the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers.
The TD Garden will shake and be sold out to the last seat. Meanwhile, in my Celtics 76ers tip, I’m siding with the home side, who should be in a slightly better position for this Game 7.
The Sixers will regret this! Because at home at 3:2 they had an excellent opportunity to advance to the Conference Final – especially since the opposing superstar couldn’t get anything done.
Jayson Tatum ended the first half with an appalling 0 for 10 shooting and it took until well into the second half for the Celtics’ figurehead to find his usual game.
The 76ers, in turn, got good numbers from Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey with 26 points apiece, but an offensive rating of 90.5 and shockingly poor transition defense cost Philadelphia the game in the end.
The Celtics kept their heads above water in Game 6 in the first half as Marcus Smart, Malcom Brogdon and Derrick White stepped into the breach for Tatum, who had been sidelined for the first two quarters.
The trio sank 8 of 11 attempts from beyond the arc in the first half to help Boston to a seven-point halftime lead, which they would extend by two more points by the end of the game (95-86).
Boston also controlled the boards 56-45 and made the zone tight. As a result, the Phillies only managed a 36.1 % shooting rate, made worse by the fact that the 76ers’ threes were not falling at all (23.5 %).
From this decisive Game 7 – for which the Celtics have the all-important home right – I expect a relatively clear victory for the green and white. Because the 76ers’ ability to set offensive accents remains limited.
An example of the one-dimensionality with which the 76ers get points is yesterday’s bench duel. Boston’s head coach used only two reserves in Malcom Brogdon (16 points) and Derrick White.
Nevertheless, the C’s won 25 to 11 in bench points, mainly because De’Anthony Melton could not score a point in 23 minutes (0/5).
On top of that, James Harden disappointed once again after a breakaway in Game 4. The unreliability of one of the best guards in the league to consistently play good play-off basketball remains a risk factor for any bets on the 76ers to win.
Far from it, the Sixers were not cold-blooded enough in the game to expect a much more convincing performance now – and at the TD Garden. What is meant here is the weak utilisation of the C’s numerous turnovers.
Boston committed 17 turnovers, the most in the playoffs for the Green and White. But the 76ers could only turn them into 18 fastbreak points. The Celtics, on the other hand, turned the Sixers’ 12 possessions into 24 fastbreak points:
The C’s simply looked hungrier, and even though Philadelphia defended excellently, my suspicion is growing that the Celtics simply have a few more opportunities to conjure up points on the board to pull out a Game 7 win.
Sportsbook apps we checked reveal that bettors are coming to a similar assessment as I am with their Celtics 76ers odds.
Indeed, with win odds of around 1.30 to 3.40, the Green and Whites should be able to play out their home court advantage without much drama with the crowd behind them.
One feature on which a successful Celtics 76ers betting tip from me has already been based in the course of this second play-off round concerns the physical advantages on the C’s side, which also came to the fore yesterday.
Overall, Boston has put more points on the scoreboard than Philadelphia in the final quarter on five occasions in this six-game series.
Summary: Although both teams had a little more time to prepare for this deciding game, the physical advantages are still clearly on the side of the green and white.
In addition, there is of course the boost of playing in front of a home crowd, which should motivate the home side even more.
I expect an extremely defensive duel, but one in which the C’s will be able to do a bit more to score, even if Jayson Tatum has trouble getting going again.
For Philadelphia, on the other hand, I fear that if Joel Embiid doesn’t put in a monster performance, there won’t be much in the way of offensive production….
My Celtics 76ers tip: BOS wins at HC -3.5.
