Celtics

The Celtics defeated a slew of fringe NBA players wearing Philadelphia 76ers jerseys to assert a 139-89 victory of their third preseason game on Saturday.

Here are the snack bars.

1. We won't elaborate on this point, so let's state this as clearly as possible at the highest. Heck, we'll even put it in a brand new paragraph so you possibly can't miss it.

Saturday's game was essentially a scrum. Everything we write through the preseason comes with the caveat that it's just the preseason, but this game was hardly the identical.

The Sixers — a team that employs Joel Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey — began Ricky Council IV, KJ Martin, Guerschon Yabusele, Jared McCain and Jeff Dowtin Jr. after playing the Timberwolves in Iowa on Friday. The Celtics were rested and jumped to the lead almost immediately. As their starters sat, their bench bombarded the replay of the Sixers, who also took the ground.

“It’s about us,” Jaylen Brown told reporters afterward. “So every time we step on the floor, it doesn’t matter who the opponent is.”

As long because the Celtics maintain this mentality, they’ll win a number of games, and if at any point Nick Nurse decides to begin Yabusele as a substitute of Embiid, the Sixers could possibly be in trouble.

1B. A really fast supporting player, good for Yabusele – the Celtics' former first-round pick was excellent for France within the Olympics and now has one other shot at an NBA contract.

2. The Celtics aren't frightened a couple of delay in game warning if a more timely warning leads to shortening the pregame high-fives.

Presumably there will likely be fewer players to salute because the roster shrinks, in order that situation won't arise when the regular season begins and…yes, we're analyzing the high-five line before the sport. No, we won't proceed.

3. Luke Kornet's candidacy for the starting role with Kristaps Porzingis injured got some momentum in the primary half – Kornet scored all 15 points in the primary two quarters and finished the sport 7 of 10 from the ground. He scored 11 points in his first stint and even handed Jayson Tatum a “1” and a “0” at one point after he scored his tenth point.

“Gotta love the cornet festivities,” Jaylen Brown quipped afterward. “Where would we be without these?”

So should Kornet start? He definitely has a number of continuity with the starters and lineups with Kornet last season arrange ridiculous numbers that outscored opponents by 12.7 points per 100 possessions.

Kornet within the starting lineup would also keep Al Horford (who missed Saturday's game after missing each contests in Abu Dhabi) on the bench longer, and it could reduce the temptation to play Horford more minutes than he did earlier within the season should when the games happen They will not be quite as essential because the games in May and June.

Saturday's game probably wasn't the deciding think about this regard. Nevertheless, Kornet played great.

4. Brown delivered 4 assists in the primary half, including this absolute gem after he rocked Council with a nasty dribble.

Brown also scored his first two baskets of the sport within the post – one on a fadeaway jumper (complete with the “too small” sign) and the second by pushing Jared McCain out of the way in which en path to a layup and a foul .

5. Tatum, meanwhile, made 3 of 8 from behind the arc after going 3 of seven in the primary two preseason games together with his latest 3-point form. These totals won't grab any headlines, but they're consistently very acceptable, which is maybe even higher news than a 6-on-8 performance – getting more consistency from Tatum as a 3-point shooter (and maybe less of it). high highs and low lows) can be an enormous boost.

6. Sam Hauser can get incredibly hot on occasion, and he looks like he's ready to begin the season with flying colours, which is an amazing sign for the Celtics. When Hauser hits 3-pointers, they're essentially unbeatable – attempting to cope with the Stars is difficult enough without bringing in a game-winning shooter who can space the ground and rating nine points in two minutes. Hauser finished 5-for-6 from behind the arc, including two smooth three-pointers within the third quarter that were more harking back to Steph Curry than Duncan Robinson.

7. We don't wish to alarm anyone, but take a have a look at Jordan Walsh shooting 3 points.

That's a shocking improvement after watching Walsh rating three points in Summer League. The 20-year-old caught a pass from Lonnie Walker right in his shooting pocket, quickly got his feet into position and delivered an ideal, smooth shot that whizzed through the online.

So was this an isolated incident? Not in any respect – Walsh went 3-for-3 from 3-point range, and all three looked similarly smooth and snappy.

Much more evidence is required that Walsh can shoot like that against NBA competition, but Saturday was a particularly encouraging performance.

8. Walker had his first promising game for the Celtics, shooting 4 of seven from the ground, scoring nine points and doling out seven assists. On a team stuffed with snipers, Walker did job of distributing the ball and moving into the paint to create passing lanes.

If he makes the ultimate roster, Walker would (after all) be well out of the rotation – at this point, it looks just like the competition for the tenth man role is between Walsh and Springer, and Walsh probably has a small one Gained a lead Saturday.

But having one other guard option on the bench, especially someone with some NBA experience, wouldn't hurt as a backup in case Derrick White or Jrue Holiday should miss a while.

9. Xavier Tillman rounded out the parade of long-distance scorers and continued his stellar begin to the preseason from 3-point range, shooting 3-on-3 from behind the arc. Tillman, who shoots 26.7 percent from behind the arc in his profession, appears relaxed and assured.

10. The Celtics return to the court on Sunday once they tackle the Raptors at TD Garden. Don't be too surprised if the team that plays the Raptors looks just like the Embiid-George-Maxey-less Sixers, who arrived in Boston on Saturday.

PHILADELPHIA – The scene might have been a repeat of 48 hours earlier, but this time things went higher for the New York Knicks.

With the Knicks holding a one-point lead and hoping to finish an NBA first-round playoff series for the second time in three days, Donte DiVincenzo stepped to the free throw line. At that moment, they knew that the sport of telephone was much more necessary than a game of basketball.

Two nights earlier, when the Knicks once more fought a troublesome battle with the Philadelphia 76ers, Josh Hart made just one in all two free throws, extending the Knicks' lead to 3 with 15 seconds left. Anyone who cares about drama knows what happened next: The Knicks didn't intentionally foul, regardless that they were speculated to. Tyrese Maxey evened the rating with a 3-pointer from Hoboken. And the 76ers won in additional time, extending the series to game six.

The Knicks said after the ultimate buzzer on Tuesday that they miscommunicated. Head coach Tom Thibodeau wanted them to commit three errors, however the message wasn't conveyed.

This shouldn't occur again.

As DiVincenzo waited for the basketball, able to shoot two free throws that might put the Knicks ahead, the Knicks players ran toward one another, reminding everyone of the situation. Everyone on the court knew the plan: If DiVincenzo sank each freebies, they’d intentionally commit a foul.

This time they did exactly that.

DiVincenzo met them each. Miles “Deuce” McBride, the identical guy who didn’t commit an intentional foul on Tuesday, hit Maxey within the backcourt long before he could take a shot. The Knicks and Sixers exchanged free throws. And it helped New York secure a 118-115 win and, more importantly, close out the series 4-2.

“When something like that happens sometimes, it crystallizes everyone’s mindset,” Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau said. “And we won’t be perfect. We will make mistakes along the way. And I think that’s what you see here.”

The Knicks will face the Indiana Pacers, who’re fresh off a six-game win over the Milwaukee Bucks, within the second round of the playoffs. Game 1 is scheduled for Monday at 7:30 p.m. ET.

New York will make mistakes on this series too. Just like against Philly, it can need to learn from them.

One reason the Knicks have made it this far — winning a playoff series two seasons in a row, the primary time this franchise has achieved that feat in 24 years — is that their mistakes make them higher.

They tousled the top of Game 5, in order that they made sure they didn't do the identical thing in Game 6.

On Thursday they achieved great success. They fouled after they were speculated to. On one other possession, with the Sixers making a play in the ultimate minute and the Knicks leading by three, Thibodeau knew Philadelphia needed to go for a three-pointer.

Instead of leaving a standard center on the ground, as he had done in Game 5 when Mitchell Robinson fouled Maxey on a four-point play, he replaced McBride for a small, do-it-all lineup with OG Anunoby at center was standing. There has been a stop.

The Knicks noticed what wasn't working and adjusted.

They put different defenders on Maxey after he scored 46 points in Game 5. In Game 6, he scored just 17 points on 18 shots. In Game 6, DiVincenzo began with him.

They reworked their double teams from Joel Embiid. In the second half of Game 6, they defended the reigning MVP squarely and didn't double him except in emergencies. Until then, they alternated where the double teams got here from, sometimes from two passes from a distance, sometimes from the baseline.

The Knicks didn't win Game 6 simply because they'd been there before.

Hart hit a three-pointer with 25.6 seconds left and finished with 16 points, 14 rebounds and 7 assists. Anunoby got here off the court within the second half, disrupted passing lanes and destroyed Embiid on a dunk within the fourth quarter. He finished with 19 points and nine boards. DiVincenzo rediscovered his shot and scored 23 points and 7 assists while sinking five 3-pointers.

And then there was Jalen Brunson, who had 41 points and 12 assists. He has now scored greater than 39 points in 4 consecutive playoff games, which was the primary time since Michael Jordan in 1993.

27-year-olds with 35+ PPG within the playoffs:

Michael Jordan
Elgin Baylor

And Jalen Brunson. pic.twitter.com/Wcbc3hSRVh

– StatMuse (@statmuse) May 3, 2024

“It was a really big test for us and we were able to come out victorious,” Brunson said. “In the future… it could be a different test, maybe something completely different. But it definitely helps, and of course you want to learn while you win, so of course we’re still playing and we want to get better.”

Because of this, the Knicks showed no real interest in moving on from the No. 2 seed at the top of the season. Others across the league, just like the Cleveland Cavaliers, feared the 76ers, who moved to seventh place as a result of Embiid's injury, enough to intentionally lose on the ultimate day of the regular season. But New York wanted that position.

With second place, this group is now well positioned.

The Knicks pushed and pushed their well past the Sixers in Round 1. They had home-field advantage in Round 2 – and they might have had it if the Pacers hadn't upset the Bucks. The Knicks – yes, the New York Knicks – will likely be the favorites to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals for the primary time since 2000.

But that doesn't mean Indiana will likely be a walk within the park.

The Pacers are gliding through games. They are speed demons in transition. The pick-and-pop between Tyrese Haliburton and Myles Turner is one of the dangerous moves within the NBA. The Knicks will run into a whole lot of problems in Round 2 that they've never seen before.

A season ago, they faced a lower seeded team within the Eastern Conference semifinals and things didn't go well for them as they lost to the Miami Heat in six games. But the Knicks are likely to learn from their mistakes.

It's a superb trait to boast within the playoffs.

“Crazy things happen in the playoffs,” Thibodeau said. “And then it depends on how you react.”