A pair of ancient Eastern Conference rivals will go head-to-head when the Boston Celtics take on the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the 2020 NBA playoffs. The two teams are no strangers when it comes to meeting in the postseason. In fact, they've met more times in the playoffs than any other two teams in NBA history. Most recently, the Celtics defeated the Sixers in five games in the Eastern Conference semifinals in 2018.
During the regular season, the Sixers beat the Celtics in three out of four meetings. However, the two teams haven't played against each other since early February and this will be a different situation for both teams, as all of the games will be played on a neutral site without fans in attendance. Plus, during the regular season the Sixers had All-Star Ben Simmons for all four of their matchups with Boston. That won't be the case in this series, as Simmons is sidelined after having knee surgery.
Below you'll find the series schedule for the Celtics and 76ers first round matchup, along with regular season results and three key storylines for the series.
(3) Celtics vs. (6) 76ers
Game 1: Monday, Aug. 17, 6:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Game 2: Wednesday, Aug. 19, 6:30 p.m. ET , ESPN
Game 3: Friday, Aug. 21, 6:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Game 4: Sunday, Aug. 23, 1 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 5*: Tuesday, Aug. 25, TBD, TBD
Game 6*: Thursday, Aug. 27, TBD, ESPN
Game 7*: Saturday, Aug. 29, TBD, TNT
Regular season results
10/23/19: 76ers 107, Celtics 93
12/12/19: 76ers 115, Celtics 109
1/9/20: 76ers 109, Celtics 98
2/1/20: Celtics 116, 76ers 95
Key storylines
1. No Ben Simmons for the 76ers
The Sixers will be without Ben Simmons for the entirety of the series against the Celtics, as he underwent surgery on his left knee earlier this month after suffering a partially dislocated kneecap during the seeding games. There is no way to sugarcoat it. This is a big blow for the Sixers. Simmons does so much for the team on both ends of the floor. He's their most versatile defender as he is able to seamlessly switch from post to perimeter players.
Simmons leads the Sixers in steals per game, and those steals lead to consistent fast break opportunities. Plus, he's third on the team in defensive rebounds per game with 5.8. Thanks to his speed, those also often result in fast break opportunities for Philadelphia, and Simmons is one of the most dangerous players in the entire league in transition. Offensively, he leads the team in assists per game and creates endless opportunities for his teammates with his advanced ability to penetrate and pass. His eight assists per game average is a testament to that. He's also third on the team in scoring. With Simmons sidelined, the Sixers will rely even more heavily on Embiid on both ends of the floor, and the roles of other offensive initiators like Shake Milton and Alec Burks will expand.
2. Al Horford goes up against his former franchise
In 2018, Al Horord played a large role in eliminating the Sixers from postseason contention as a member of the Celtics. Now, the roles are reversed and Horford will look to eliminate the Celtics as a member of the Sixers. After three solid seasons in Boston, Horford defected to Philadelphia in free agency last offseason, and though there doesn't seem to be much lingering bad blood between Horford and his former Celtics teammates, both sides will certainly be eager to show that they're doing just fine without the other.
For Horford in Philadelphia, the regular season results were underwhelming, but Horford has the opportunity to rewrite the script of his first season with the Sixers with a great run in the postseason. With Simmons unavailable, the Sixers will need Horford to produce more than he has all season. They will need him to guard some of Boston's dangerous perimeter players -- Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Gordon Hayward -- for stretches, and they will also need him to generate offense, both for himself and others. In short, the Sixers will need Horford to look a lot like he did during his run with the Celtics in order to beat the Celtics.
3. Brett Brown potentially coaching for his job
Brett Brown's job could potentially be on the line in this series against the Celtics. Heading into the 2019-20 season it was widely believed that Brown's long-term future with the franchise depended on how the Sixers performed in the postseason, and that could very well still be the case. With Simmons out, however, the task of advancing in the East will be a lot tougher, and Brown's coaching will come under even more scrutiny.
Brown will now be tasked with engineering an offense entirely around Embiid, while maximizing the All-Star's talent in the process. There's no scheme that can make up for the loss of an All-NBA-caliber defender, but Brown will have to try. Without Simmons' individual ability to stop or slow opponents at the point of attack, the Sixers will likely look to funnel more of their opponent's offense into the paint, where Embiid will be lurking.
Those in Philadelphia's front office that will be tasked with determining Brown's fate moving forward will use context, and the fact that one of the team's biggest weapons was unavailable will certainly be taken into consideration. If the Sixers are able to look solid, and even advance in the playoffs without Simmons, Brown could end up buying himself another season, at least. However, with all the money that the organization spent in free agency last offseason, it's tough to imagine Brown surviving a first-round flameout, even without Simmons' services.
While some would call for a roster shakeup following an early exit from the postseason, the Sixers' front office would likely look to install a new system under a new coach before making the decision to move on from either one of their young All-Stars in Embiid and Simmons, especially since Brown is the only coach that either has ever had since entering the league. Brad Stevens, on the other hand, will be safe regardless of the outcome of the series, as he just signed a contract extension with the Celtics earlier this month.
