It is a good day when NBA basketball starts again.
We had a great game to start it out – Philadelphia 76ers vs the Boston Celtics
*full disclosure I’m a Celtics fan*
I don’t want to overreact to one game but the rest of this article is going to be me overreacting to the first game of the year.
Celtics win 126-117
Tatum – 35/12/4
Brown – 35 points
Brogdon – 16 points
Grant – 15 points
Smart – 14/7
Celtics – 56% FGs
Celtics – 12-35 3Ps
Celtics – 11 TOsHarden – 35/8/8
Embiid – 26/15/5
Maxey – 21 points
Harris – 18 points
76ers – 50% FGs
76ers – 13-34 3Ps
76ers – 14 TOs— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) October 19, 2022
This Celtics team looks a million times better than the team that made the finals last year.
We can start with the new additions. Basically, every new addition played great in this game for the Celtics. Brogdon was exactly what the Celtics needed off the bench. He was confident and a playmaker taking pressure off the Celtics stars. He will be the biggest addition of all. Blake Griffin and Noah Vonleh also played great. Neither were brought in to be all-stars – they were brought in to give the Celtics depth at the big positions and make hustle plays. Both Griffin and Vonleh looked great and will give the Celtics much-needed depth.
The next big observation has to be Tatum and Brown. Yes, they combined for 70 points but that was not the most impressive part of their game. They finally looked like they were playing in a system. Last season, they played well but watching them was not exactly the easiest on the nerves. So many tough shots. This game was completely different. They got out on the fast break and played quickly and decisively within the offense. They looked dominant and unstoppable.
If the Celtics play like this all year they will be back in the finals once again and this time they won’t lose!
I think there is a legit chance the @celtics go 82-0. They are that good this year. Brogden was the pickup of the off season.
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) October 19, 2022