The good news? The game doesn’t count towards their record, and Stevens will have a better idea of what he has in his youngest players.
Here’s how it all went:
START FIVE:
PG: Marcus Smart
SG: Javonte Green
SF: Jaylen Brown
PF: Jayson Tatum
C: Daniel Theis
THESE ARE DEFINITELY EXPERIMENTAL LINE UPS
Within minutes of the game, Smart took a preseason attack to really set his tone for the season.
Green took advantage of his time on the field with a fast 3-pointer to get the Celtics on the board and had an early steal. He was 2-for-2 to the floor when the Celtics withdrew to an 11-6 lead.
The Sixers were able to move forward, however, as Stevens took Tatum off the floor and turned the guys over with Brown and Smart at the end of the couch.
And when the Celtics attack came to a halt, Embiid scored nine points, two assists and a bargain by the end of the quarter.
Tatum and Green lead the Celtics with five points each, Pritchard hit a smooth jumper for his first NBA points, and Boston trailed 29-19.
TEAGUE PROMISE FROM THE BANK
Pritchard and Teague showed some promise for the bank’s violation by making immediate contributions. Teague had back-to-back 3-pointers early in the second quarter to keep things close. And hopefully lobs from a fast Pritchard in the transition to Robert Williams will be something we see often.
And Pritchard did this in defense too.
Teague hit a perfect 3-for-3 in triples and led the Celtics with nine runs at half time. Tatum was all over the stats, scoring eight points early with four rebounds, two assists, a block and a bargain. Smart was there and made several offensive errors.
Brown (eight rebounds), Green and Semi Ojeleye each had five points in the half, leading the Sixers 50-44 with the help of 11 turnovers.
Oddly enough, rookie Aaron Nesmith didn’t see the floor in the first two quarters.
CELTIC IS STILL PLAYING FROM THE BACK
Boston got off to a strong second half, with a dive steal by Smart immediately after hitting a jumper. He handed it out to Green in the transition, which ended with a jam.
And after an inconsistent start, Robert Williams seemed to shake out some of the nerves.
Nesmith and Carsen Edwards saw their season debut in the third quarter, and Nesmith hit a trey to get on the board for the first time.