The Boston Celtics played their final game of the preseason in Philadelphia Friday night. As was the case in game 1 of the preseason, Boston rested their key starters and vets, handing the bench unit plenty of run against a full-strength Philadelphia 76ers team. The lead flip flopped throughout the second half as both teams traded blows down the stretch, Boston would would get contributions from top to bottom in overtime to grab another preseason win, 125-120. Hugo Gonzalez led the team with 21 points, all 12 available players scoring for the road team.

Boston came into the game with a perfect 3 wins from 3 games; they started yet another curveball lineup with Milos Uzan, Hayden Gray, Tucker DeVries, Gabe McGlothan, and rookie Chris Cenac Jr. Sam Cassell was handed head coaching duties as the Boston bench was filled out by the stay-ready unit of Luka Garza, Jordan Walsh, Baylor Scheierman, Amari Williams, Dillon Mitchell, Ron Harper Jr and Hugo Gonzalez.

Baylor Scheierman has had an excellent preseason, averaging 8 points and 4 assists per game through three games, whilst Hugo Gonzalez has shot the three ball consistently well, coming into the game with 8/13 from downtown.

Jaylen Brown did not play in Boston but was suited up against his former team, just 103 after the blockbuster offseason trade that rocked the NBA landscape and the Eastern Conference. He was joined in the starting five by Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, LeBron James, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

Milos Uzan hit on the first score of the game with a triple just 45 seconds into the contest. Hayden Gray got downhill and drove the ball as Boston took an early 5-2 lead.

Philly hit their first 7 free throws of the contest and took the lead. Boston had 3 early turnovers as things looked sloppy on the road. Gabe McGlothan hit a triple over a scrambling Jaylen Brown and Milos Uzan with the nifty pass into the corner in front of the C’s bench.

Sam Cassell subbed in 5 players at the six-minute mark of the first quarter, Garza, Harper Jr, Scheierman, Walsh and Gonzalez coming into the game. Luka Garza snagged a weak-side rebound over Embiid, dished to Hugo, who Euro stepped into the lane for a layup.

Ron Harper Jr attacked the paint past two Philly defenders for his score of the game, showing his quickness on the layup. Luka Garza continued his preseason three-point barrage, nailing his first three-point attempt of the game, with Baylor Scheierman finding the big man with the assist. Boston up by 3 points with 2 minutes to go in the quarter, 25-22.

Hugo Gonzalez stole the ball at mid court and got away with a clear travel as he dunked it home late in the first quarter. Boston took a six-point lead after a quarter of play, 34-28. Hugo Gonzalez leading the way on the road with a game-high 10 points in just six minutes of play.

Dillon Mitchell and Amari Williams checked into the game to start the second quarter, they would be joined by Uzan, Devries, and Cenac Jr. Jaylen Brown laced home a corner three-pointer over Amari Williams, for his twelth point of the game. Nick Nurse rolled out a second quarter lineup of Maxey, LeBron James and Jaylen Brown and they showed some early signs of 76er chemistry regaining the lead and outscoring Boston 14 to 6 to start the quarter.

Baylor Scheierman drilled a wide open three-pointer, his first score on eight shot attempts. Both teams struggling from deep in an ugly first half shooting display, Boston shooting just 23% and Philly a dismal 14% from long range midway through the second quarter.

Hugo Gonzalez was the only player on either side shooting with confidence, he had a second triple of the game over Tyrese Maxey at the top of the key, for his 13th point. Walsh joined in on the party splashing home his first three-pointer of the game, Boston back on top by 2 points, 54-52.

Joel Embiid finally got into the game late in the second quarter, the big man hitting 7-straight points to go into halftime up by 2 points, 58-60.

Sam Cassell handed Jordan Walsh, Luka Garza, Hugo Gonzalez, Ron Harper Jr, and Baylor Scheierman the start in the second half against Philly’s starting five. The Philly starters were locked in, hitting seven straight points to start the third.

Gonzalez hit his third triple of the night for his nineteenth point in just sixteen minutes of action. Embiid leading all scorers with 23 points with a quarter and a half to go in the game.

Jordan Walsh had a terrific driving move past LeBron James at the three-point line and attacked the rim with Embiid in the paint, his ninth point, showcasing some new tools in his tool bag this preseason.

Sam Cassell gave the Maine Celtics a run to end the third quarter against the Philly starters, LeBron James playing 24 minutes in the final preseason game was surprising to see.

The third quarter ended with Boston making a mini run, Uzan and Grey hitting three-pointers. With 12 minutes left in the game, it was Philadelphia up by 10 points, 84-94.

Amari Williams connected with Ron Harper Jr to score the first points of the 4th quarter as he knived into the lane.

Tucker DeVries hit a pair of triples as the (Maine) Celtics as the road team got the game back within 4 points, Gabe McGlotham really active hitting the boards for Boston.

Jaylen Brown stuck in the game as the other Philly starters looked on from the bench. He eventually would hit the pine with seven minutes left in the contest.

Ron Harper Jr gave Celtics fans plenty to cheer about mid way through the fourth as he hit back-to-back buckets, the Philly fans nervous as Boston kept hanging around, down just 3 points, 97-100.

Tucker DeVries stuck another triple to give Boston the lead, 102-100. Chris Cenac Jr had some good active minutes late in the fourth, unfortunately, he would foul out of the game with 12 points and 7 rebounds.

With the game tied at 115, it was nervous going for both teams down the stretch. DeVries and Ron Harper Jr spearheading the charge for Boston. At the end of regulation though it was still tied. Ladies and Gentleman, we would see overtime minutes in the final preseason game.

Dillon Mitchell skied for the fast break jam in overtime, Boston up 119-117. Dillon Mitchell really came alive in OT, snagging a board and drilling a triple as the rookie was showing promising signs for Boston.

Philadelphia went ice cold in the overtime period as the C’s were up by 5 points with 30 seconds on the clock. Milos Uzan netted the dagger midrange shot to win it in style for Boston.

That is a finally a wrap on the preseason. Joe Mazzulla and the coaching staff have managed the minutes well, giving fans a taste of the roster depth from top to bottom. Rookies Chris Cenac Jr. and Dillon Mitchell have gotten minutes against NBA talent in each game which is great to see.

The Boston Celtics will travel to Detroit to face the Pistons for the first of 82 games on Tuesday, at the super early time slot of 3pm EST. Stay locked into CelticsBlog for all the pregame coverage as we embark on a big season.

The Boston Celtics played their final game of the preseason in Philadelphia Friday night. As was the case in game 1 of the preseason, Boston rested their key starters and vets, handing the bench unit plenty of run against a full-strength Philadelphia 76ers team. The lead flip flopped throughout the second half as both teams traded blows down the stretch, Boston would would get contributions from top to bottom in overtime to grab another preseason win, 125-120. Hugo Gonzalez led the team with 21 points, all 12 available players scoring for the road team.

Boston came into the game with a perfect 3 wins from 3 games; they started yet another curveball lineup with Milos Uzan, Hayden Gray, Tucker DeVries, Gabe McGlothan, and rookie Chris Cenac Jr. Sam Cassell was handed head coaching duties as the Boston bench was filled out by the stay-ready unit of Luka Garza, Jordan Walsh, Baylor Scheierman, Amari Williams, Dillon Mitchell, Ron Harper Jr and Hugo Gonzalez.

Baylor Scheierman has had an excellent preseason, averaging 8 points and 4 assists per game through three games, whilst Hugo Gonzalez has shot the three ball consistently well, coming into the game with 8/13 from downtown.

Jaylen Brown did not play in Boston but was suited up against his former team, just 103 after the blockbuster offseason trade that rocked the NBA landscape and the Eastern Conference. He was joined in the starting five by Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, LeBron James, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

Milos Uzan hit on the first score of the game with a triple just 45 seconds into the contest. Hayden Gray got downhill and drove the ball as Boston took an early 5-2 lead.

Philly hit their first 7 free throws of the contest and took the lead. Boston had 3 early turnovers as things looked sloppy on the road. Gabe McGlothan hit a triple over a scrambling Jaylen Brown and Milos Uzan with the nifty pass into the corner in front of the C’s bench.

Sam Cassell subbed in 5 players at the six-minute mark of the first quarter, Garza, Harper Jr, Scheierman, Walsh and Gonzalez coming into the game. Luka Garza snagged a weak-side rebound over Embiid, dished to Hugo, who Euro stepped into the lane for a layup.

Ron Harper Jr attacked the paint past two Philly defenders for his score of the game, showing his quickness on the layup. Luka Garza continued his preseason three-point barrage, nailing his first three-point attempt of the game, with Baylor Scheierman finding the big man with the assist. Boston up by 3 points with 2 minutes to go in the quarter, 25-22.

Hugo Gonzalez stole the ball at mid court and got away with a clear travel as he dunked it home late in the first quarter. Boston took a six-point lead after a quarter of play, 34-28. Hugo Gonzalez leading the way on the road with a game-high 10 points in just six minutes of play.

Dillon Mitchell and Amari Williams checked into the game to start the second quarter, they would be joined by Uzan, Devries, and Cenac Jr. Jaylen Brown laced home a corner three-pointer over Amari Williams, for his twelth point of the game. Nick Nurse rolled out a second quarter lineup of Maxey, LeBron James and Jaylen Brown and they showed some early signs of 76er chemistry regaining the lead and outscoring Boston 14 to 6 to start the quarter.

Baylor Scheierman drilled a wide open three-pointer, his first score on eight shot attempts. Both teams struggling from deep in an ugly first half shooting display, Boston shooting just 23% and Philly a dismal 14% from long range midway through the second quarter.

Hugo Gonzalez was the only player on either side shooting with confidence, he had a second triple of the game over Tyrese Maxey at the top of the key, for his 13th point. Walsh joined in on the party splashing home his first three-pointer of the game, Boston back on top by 2 points, 54-52.

Joel Embiid finally got into the game late in the second quarter, the big man hitting 7-straight points to go into halftime up by 2 points, 58-60.

Sam Cassell handed Jordan Walsh, Luka Garza, Hugo Gonzalez, Ron Harper Jr, and Baylor Scheierman the start in the second half against Philly’s starting five. The Philly starters were locked in, hitting seven straight points to start the third.

Gonzalez hit his third triple of the night for his nineteenth point in just sixteen minutes of action. Embiid leading all scorers with 23 points with a quarter and a half to go in the game.

Jordan Walsh had a terrific driving move past LeBron James at the three-point line and attacked the rim with Embiid in the paint, his ninth point, showcasing some new tools in his tool bag this preseason.

Sam Cassell gave the Maine Celtics a run to end the third quarter against the Philly starters, LeBron James playing 24 minutes in the final preseason game was surprising to see.

The third quarter ended with Boston making a mini run, Uzan and Grey hitting three-pointers. With 12 minutes left in the game, it was Philadelphia up by 10 points, 84-94.

Amari Williams connected with Ron Harper Jr to score the first points of the 4th quarter as he knived into the lane.

Tucker DeVries hit a pair of triples as the (Maine) Celtics as the road team got the game back within 4 points, Gabe McGlotham really active hitting the boards for Boston.

Jaylen Brown stuck in the game as the other Philly starters looked on from the bench. He eventually would hit the pine with seven minutes left in the contest.

Ron Harper Jr gave Celtics fans plenty to cheer about mid way through the fourth as he hit back-to-back buckets, the Philly fans nervous as Boston kept hanging around, down just 3 points, 97-100.

Tucker DeVries stuck another triple to give Boston the lead, 102-100. Chris Cenac Jr had some good active minutes late in the fourth, unfortunately, he would foul out of the game with 12 points and 7 rebounds.

With the game tied at 115, it was nervous going for both teams down the stretch. DeVries and Ron Harper Jr spearheading the charge for Boston. At the end of regulation though it was still tied. Ladies and Gentleman, we would see overtime minutes in the final preseason game.

Dillon Mitchell skied for the fast break jam in overtime, Boston up 119-117. Dillon Mitchell really came alive in OT, snagging a board and drilling a triple as the rookie was showing promising signs for Boston.

Philadelphia went ice cold in the overtime period as the C’s were up by 5 points with 30 seconds on the clock. Milos Uzan netted the dagger midrange shot to win it in style for Boston.

That is a finally a wrap on the preseason. Joe Mazzulla and the coaching staff have managed the minutes well, giving fans a taste of the roster depth from top to bottom. Rookies Chris Cenac Jr. and Dillon Mitchell have gotten minutes against NBA talent in each game which is great to see.

The Boston Celtics will travel to Detroit to face the Pistons for the first of 82 games on Tuesday, at the super early time slot of 3pm EST. Stay locked into CelticsBlog for all the pregame coverage as we embark on a big season.

The Lakers unveiled on Friday night what could be their starting lineup when the regular season starts next week.

And the first unit featured a surprising twist. 

The Lakers started Matisse Thybulle and Ziaire Williams alongside Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and Walker Kessler against the Nuggets for their preseason finale at Crypto.com Arena. 

Doncic, Reaves and Kessler – the Lakers’ “Big 3” and three-highest paid players – were already known to be confirmed starters before Friday. 

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Williams, who returned to the lineup after missing the previous three exhibitions, was also expected to start.

Thybulle’s inclusion over Quentin Grimes was the surprise, though coach JJ Redick made it clear Grimes will start games for the Lakers during the regular season. 

Grimes started in all four of the Lakers’ previous preseason games. He averaged 12.3 points on 53.3% shooting (41.2% on 3-pointers) in those exhibitions.

But Redick decided to go in a different direction, mentioning wanting to have lineup balance and Grimes operating as a ball-handler off of the bench in light of Collin Sexton being sidelined because of right lower leg injury.

“I’m still open to both,” Redick responded when asked about Grimes’ role as a starter vs. coming off of the bench. “You’re looking for balance in lineups and you’re looking for players that complement and fit each other. He’s gonna start a lot of games for us, that’s just the reality of it. I don’t know who our base starting group is yet, but we’re look at this.”

“Quentin is also gonna maybe have some looks as a ball handler. That’s another reason we wanted to give this a look.” 

The lineup of Doncic, Reaves, Thybulle, Williams and Kessler could start when the Lakers host the Warriors on Wednesday, but Redick left the door open.

“I know that there’s a chance Quentin is gonna have an opportunity to start,” Redick said.

“This [lineup] was the original plan we were gonna have for the Sacramento game with Collin out.  And we’ll see, we just wanna get a look on that [on Friday] and we’ll see. But nothing definitive for next week [against the Warriors].”

Thybulle, who signed a veteran’s minimum contract with the Lakers in July, is entering his eighth NBA season after building a reputation as a 3-and-D wing.

He played in just 45 regular season games with the Trail Blazers from 2024-26 because of a variety of injuries.

Redick said the plan was for Thybulle, who’s averaged 17.6 minutes per game over the last two seasons, to play 25 minutes on Friday and then see how his body responds to the workload.

“There certainly is a capacity that you need to have to play 30-plus minutes,” Redick said. “So it’s physically just something we’re gonna have to manage all season. But I feel like we have a great plan in place and Matisse has, I talked to him [on Thursday], he has a lot of confidence in the plan and a lot of confidence in our training staff.”

The Lakers unveiled on Friday night what could be their starting lineup when the regular season starts next week.

And the first unit featured a surprising twist. 

The Lakers started Matisse Thybulle and Ziaire Williams alongside Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and Walker Kessler against the Nuggets for their preseason finale at Crypto.com Arena. 

Doncic, Reaves and Kessler – the Lakers’ “Big 3” and three-highest paid players – were already known to be confirmed starters before Friday. 

Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters

Williams, who returned to the lineup after missing the previous three exhibitions, was also expected to start.

Thybulle’s inclusion over Quentin Grimes was the surprise, though coach JJ Redick made it clear Grimes will start games for the Lakers during the regular season. 

Grimes started in all four of the Lakers’ previous preseason games. He averaged 12.3 points on 53.3% shooting (41.2% on 3-pointers) in those exhibitions.

But Redick decided to go in a different direction, mentioning wanting to have lineup balance and Grimes operating as a ball-handler off of the bench in light of Collin Sexton being sidelined because of right lower leg injury.

“I’m still open to both,” Redick responded when asked about Grimes’ role as a starter vs. coming off of the bench. “You’re looking for balance in lineups and you’re looking for players that complement and fit each other. He’s gonna start a lot of games for us, that’s just the reality of it. I don’t know who our base starting group is yet, but we’re look at this.”

“Quentin is also gonna maybe have some looks as a ball handler. That’s another reason we wanted to give this a look.” 

The lineup of Doncic, Reaves, Thybulle, Williams and Kessler could start when the Lakers host the Warriors on Wednesday, but Redick left the door open.

“I know that there’s a chance Quentin is gonna have an opportunity to start,” Redick said.

“This [lineup] was the original plan we were gonna have for the Sacramento game with Collin out.  And we’ll see, we just wanna get a look on that [on Friday] and we’ll see. But nothing definitive for next week [against the Warriors].”

Thybulle, who signed a veteran’s minimum contract with the Lakers in July, is entering his eighth NBA season after building a reputation as a 3-and-D wing.

He played in just 45 regular season games with the Trail Blazers from 2024-26 because of a variety of injuries.

Redick said the plan was for Thybulle, who’s averaged 17.6 minutes per game over the last two seasons, to play 25 minutes on Friday and then see how his body responds to the workload.

“There certainly is a capacity that you need to have to play 30-plus minutes,” Redick said. “So it’s physically just something we’re gonna have to manage all season. But I feel like we have a great plan in place and Matisse has, I talked to him [on Thursday], he has a lot of confidence in the plan and a lot of confidence in our training staff.”

That’s enough preseason — who is ready for the real thing?

The Sixers coasted through the 2026 preseason finale, losing 125-120 in overtime against some form of the Boston Celtics Friday night. The starters once again weren’t at their sharpest, but still gave the fans plenty of highlights.

In his first home game as a Sixer, LeBron James had eight points on 4-of-9 shooting along with eight rebounds and seven assists.

Joel Embiid led the Sixers with 27 points shooting 7-of-13 from the floor with eight rebounds and five assists. Tyrese Maxey had 22 points and six assists on 7-of-11 shooting. Jaylen Brown shot 8-of-14 from the floor to put up 20 points, eight rebounds and three assists.

The Sixers held out VJ Edgecombe for this one, Nick Nurse said it was due to him playing the first three preseason games on top of hard practices. Adem Bona (foot), Anfernee Simons (hamstring), Dominick Barlow (back) and Tacko Fall (hip) remained out.

Here are some thoughts at the buzzer.

First Quarter

• There was actually the tiniest bit of pressure for the starting unit, and really the whole team, to look good as the Celtics only started one player on a standard contract. Their first three shots of the game were threes off the mark missed by LeBron, Embiid and KCP, respectively. Embiid scored their first points of the game, an and-1 by the block in what was a sloppy opening few minutes.
• If there was one theme early, it was moving the ball. Nearly every possession for the Sixers early had at least two passes, with an emphasis also on getting the ball down the floor quick to create transition opportunities. There was plenty of sloppiness as they turned the ball over three times. They finally connected on a fast break a little over four minutes into a game, but it was a beautiful fast break lob from Maxey to James.

• Brown made his first offensive impact on the game with a driving and-1 coming out of a timeout. Boston brought out an entirely new group during the break, one consisting of more of their usual second-stringers. Embiid looked way more in rhythm than he did in Brooklyn, but he basically just had to show up to do that.
• The sloppiness did continue through the heart of the Sixers’ offense. Embiid and Maxey each turned the ball over three times in the quarter. They closed the frame with a unit of Brown and bench players, and it didn’t look much better. Brown got stripped trying to spin through a double team and Labaron Philon Jr. had his first shot of the night blocked. Justin Edwards continues to have a rough preseason but at least was able to hit a grenade that was passed to him in the midrange. The Sixers trailed the JV Celtics by six after one.

Second Quarter

• James checked back in and the first play ran might have looked better than anything they ran in the first quarter. James caught the ball at the free throw line and let his teammates cut through to find a wide open Brown for three, it fell just short. Brown made up for that by finishing a fast break started by a Dean Wade steal.
• James tried to do Embiid’s signature through-the-legs drop pass to Philon and while it didn’t go as smoothly as when Maxey and Embiid run it, Philon was able to pump fake his defender and knock down a good looking midrange. Brown started to heat up as he put up 14 in the half. LeBron was causing damage on cuts and rolls but left some points at the free throw line.

• It was far from LeBron’s sharpest outing, but there was still something so cool about seeing him pick, roll and be wide open for a dump off pass from Maxey. Their chemistry was on display a few possessions later as well when LeBron threw a gorgeous touchdown pass Maxey easily finished in transition. He hit Jabari Walker with a similar pass the following possession, but Walker had to settle for two at the line.

• The offense went back to looking pretty choppy once James went back to the bench, but a couple missed layups definitely exaggerated that feeling. Embiid didn’t get a three to fall until his fifth attempt of the night, but that seemed to finally help him as he hit a rhythm jumper to put the Sixers up by two to close the half.

Third Quarter

• Unfortunately, there might be another injury to monitor among the front court reserves as Dean Wade appeared to tweak his ankle late in the second quarter. He left the game and wasn’t on the bench to start the second half.
• As expected, the starters were back out there to start the second half, and Jordan Walsh took that opportunity to try to posterize Embiid. The attempt was blocked, leading to a Brown transition layup. Embiid knocked down a LeBron-assisted three, then blew past his defender to throw down his hardest dunk in quite a long time. For as lackadaisical as his passes were, he was moving around the court great.

• Another thing that wasn’t too surprising was a pretty apathetic effort from the Sixers’ starters defensively. Which is totally fine, they were playing second-stringers in a preseason game. The moments they did decide to just envelop the ball handler and rip it away from him was fun to watch. It seems like a technique Maxey wants to learn more of from Brown in particular. Maxey got a couple transition opportunities thanks to a steal of that sort and a LeBron block.
• It’s been a mixed bag of a preseason for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Not only has his age shown in moments, but he’s made some mistakes not befitting of a veteran like his foul on a three-point shooter earlier in the quarter. By just standing in the corner he’s already a better floor spacer than forwards in previous years, and he poked free a steal and drew an offensive foul on back-to-back possessions. With Edwards having the preseason he is, it doesn’t seem like anyone will be challenging his rotation spot for now.
• The starters played almost, if not all of the quarter, and they finally looked the level ahead of the competition they were supposed to. The combination of Embiid and Maxey both getting into a groove offensively covered up a lot. Walker continued his strong camp with a couple nice finishes at the basket as the Sixers ended the third up 10.

Fourth Quarter

• Maxey, Embiid and James’ nights were done, but Brown’s surprisingly wasn’t. He hit a tough midrange that stopped an 8-0 Boston run. He got to the line a few possessions later but missed both shots. His night would end about a minute later. The big positive from this stretch was the two bounce passes Philon made to cutters, one of which went to Brown.
• Philon made a difficult floater in traffic, then made another slick bounce pass to Walker cutting down the lane. Walker made a nice drive for an and-1 on the following possession. It was very encouraging play from those two as the Sixers’ offense had began to lose steam as the stars left the game.
• The Celtics reserves looked pretty motivated to pull this win out, and looked to be in good shape to do so until Philon hit a bail-out three with three minutes to go. The crowd got just as into it when Jameer Nelson Jr. got two steals to keep the Sixers on the seesaw.

• Dillon Jones had the chance to put the Sixers up three with an and-1, but missed the free throw and Ron Harper Jr. tied the game on the ensuing possession. Philon made a pretty move to try to take the lead with 30 seconds left, but his layup attempt just rolled out. Jones made up for his miss by stealing the ball away. Philon dribbled out the clock, kicked to Edwards for the three at the buzzer, but it went wide to send the preseason finale to an extra period.

Overtime

• Nelson grabbed another steal that led to another Jones layup. The Sixers only scored one more basket for the rest of overtime. Justin Edwards couldn’t even get a putback layup to fall. That will do it for the preseason, it’s time for some games that count.

That’s enough preseason — who is ready for the real thing?

The Sixers coasted through the 2026 preseason finale, losing 125-120 in overtime against some form of the Boston Celtics Friday night. The starters once again weren’t at their sharpest, but still gave the fans plenty of highlights.

In his first home game as a Sixer, LeBron James had eight points on 4-of-9 shooting along with eight rebounds and seven assists.

Joel Embiid led the Sixers with 27 points shooting 7-of-13 from the floor with eight rebounds and five assists. Tyrese Maxey had 22 points and six assists on 7-of-11 shooting. Jaylen Brown shot 8-of-14 from the floor to put up 20 points, eight rebounds and three assists.

The Sixers held out VJ Edgecombe for this one, Nick Nurse said it was due to him playing the first three preseason games on top of hard practices. Adem Bona (foot), Anfernee Simons (hamstring), Dominick Barlow (back) and Tacko Fall (hip) remained out.

Here are some thoughts at the buzzer.

First Quarter

• There was actually the tiniest bit of pressure for the starting unit, and really the whole team, to look good as the Celtics only started one player on a standard contract. Their first three shots of the game were threes off the mark missed by LeBron, Embiid and KCP, respectively. Embiid scored their first points of the game, an and-1 by the block in what was a sloppy opening few minutes.
• If there was one theme early, it was moving the ball. Nearly every possession for the Sixers early had at least two passes, with an emphasis also on getting the ball down the floor quick to create transition opportunities. There was plenty of sloppiness as they turned the ball over three times. They finally connected on a fast break a little over four minutes into a game, but it was a beautiful fast break lob from Maxey to James.

• Brown made his first offensive impact on the game with a driving and-1 coming out of a timeout. Boston brought out an entirely new group during the break, one consisting of more of their usual second-stringers. Embiid looked way more in rhythm than he did in Brooklyn, but he basically just had to show up to do that.
• The sloppiness did continue through the heart of the Sixers’ offense. Embiid and Maxey each turned the ball over three times in the quarter. They closed the frame with a unit of Brown and bench players, and it didn’t look much better. Brown got stripped trying to spin through a double team and Labaron Philon Jr. had his first shot of the night blocked. Justin Edwards continues to have a rough preseason but at least was able to hit a grenade that was passed to him in the midrange. The Sixers trailed the JV Celtics by six after one.

Second Quarter

• James checked back in and the first play ran might have looked better than anything they ran in the first quarter. James caught the ball at the free throw line and let his teammates cut through to find a wide open Brown for three, it fell just short. Brown made up for that by finishing a fast break started by a Dean Wade steal.
• James tried to do Embiid’s signature through-the-legs drop pass to Philon and while it didn’t go as smoothly as when Maxey and Embiid run it, Philon was able to pump fake his defender and knock down a good looking midrange. Brown started to heat up as he put up 14 in the half. LeBron was causing damage on cuts and rolls but left some points at the free throw line.

• It was far from LeBron’s sharpest outing, but there was still something so cool about seeing him pick, roll and be wide open for a dump off pass from Maxey. Their chemistry was on display a few possessions later as well when LeBron threw a gorgeous touchdown pass Maxey easily finished in transition. He hit Jabari Walker with a similar pass the following possession, but Walker had to settle for two at the line.

• The offense went back to looking pretty choppy once James went back to the bench, but a couple missed layups definitely exaggerated that feeling. Embiid didn’t get a three to fall until his fifth attempt of the night, but that seemed to finally help him as he hit a rhythm jumper to put the Sixers up by two to close the half.

Third Quarter

• Unfortunately, there might be another injury to monitor among the front court reserves as Dean Wade appeared to tweak his ankle late in the second quarter. He left the game and wasn’t on the bench to start the second half.
• As expected, the starters were back out there to start the second half, and Jordan Walsh took that opportunity to try to posterize Embiid. The attempt was blocked, leading to a Brown transition layup. Embiid knocked down a LeBron-assisted three, then blew past his defender to throw down his hardest dunk in quite a long time. For as lackadaisical as his passes were, he was moving around the court great.

• Another thing that wasn’t too surprising was a pretty apathetic effort from the Sixers’ starters defensively. Which is totally fine, they were playing second-stringers in a preseason game. The moments they did decide to just envelop the ball handler and rip it away from him was fun to watch. It seems like a technique Maxey wants to learn more of from Brown in particular. Maxey got a couple transition opportunities thanks to a steal of that sort and a LeBron block.
• It’s been a mixed bag of a preseason for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Not only has his age shown in moments, but he’s made some mistakes not befitting of a veteran like his foul on a three-point shooter earlier in the quarter. By just standing in the corner he’s already a better floor spacer than forwards in previous years, and he poked free a steal and drew an offensive foul on back-to-back possessions. With Edwards having the preseason he is, it doesn’t seem like anyone will be challenging his rotation spot for now.
• The starters played almost, if not all of the quarter, and they finally looked the level ahead of the competition they were supposed to. The combination of Embiid and Maxey both getting into a groove offensively covered up a lot. Walker continued his strong camp with a couple nice finishes at the basket as the Sixers ended the third up 10.

Fourth Quarter

• Maxey, Embiid and James’ nights were done, but Brown’s surprisingly wasn’t. He hit a tough midrange that stopped an 8-0 Boston run. He got to the line a few possessions later but missed both shots. His night would end about a minute later. The big positive from this stretch was the two bounce passes Philon made to cutters, one of which went to Brown.
• Philon made a difficult floater in traffic, then made another slick bounce pass to Walker cutting down the lane. Walker made a nice drive for an and-1 on the following possession. It was very encouraging play from those two as the Sixers’ offense had began to lose steam as the stars left the game.
• The Celtics reserves looked pretty motivated to pull this win out, and looked to be in good shape to do so until Philon hit a bail-out three with three minutes to go. The crowd got just as into it when Jameer Nelson Jr. got two steals to keep the Sixers on the seesaw.

• Dillon Jones had the chance to put the Sixers up three with an and-1, but missed the free throw and Ron Harper Jr. tied the game on the ensuing possession. Philon made a pretty move to try to take the lead with 30 seconds left, but his layup attempt just rolled out. Jones made up for his miss by stealing the ball away. Philon dribbled out the clock, kicked to Edwards for the three at the buzzer, but it went wide to send the preseason finale to an extra period.

Overtime

• Nelson grabbed another steal that led to another Jones layup. The Sixers only scored one more basket for the rest of overtime. Justin Edwards couldn’t even get a putback layup to fall. That will do it for the preseason, it’s time for some games that count.

One last preseason game. What are you looking for tonight against Utah?

One last preseason game. What are you looking for tonight against Utah?

The 2025-26 Knicks accomplished a feat the franchise hadn’t seen in 53 years: capturing an NBA title.

And while the win made the Knicks the talk of the basketball world and took over NYC for the summer, Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby and the rest of the team now have to defend their title -- another feat the organization hasn’t had to do in quite some time.

"Not being satisfied is the biggest takeaway moving forward," Brunson said of the mindset of trying to repeat. "We just have to find a way to turn the page and move on. Last year we took everything one day at a time. We know what it takes, going through the same mindset for this journey. It's a new journey. It's a different journey. The approach has to be the same, if not better."

But as we gear up for the start of the 2026-27 season, here’s what happened to the Knicks the last time they entered as the defending champions…

Regular Season

The Knicks had an uneven start, going 6-4 across their first 10 games. But the defending champions found their way, finishing the year with a 49-33 record despite a 4-6 record over their final 10 games.

New York helped themselves by putting together six winning streaks of at least four wins. Although they had eight fewer wins than their championship year, they finished with the second-best record in the Eastern Conference, only bested by the Boston Celtics (56-26), who were led by Dave Cowens, John Havlicek and Paul Silas.

Walt Frazier led the team in points (20.5), assists (6.9), steals (2.0) and minutes played (41.7). He finished sixth in MVP voting, was voted into the All-Star Game and made first-team All-NBA and All-Defense.

Dave Debusschere was Frazier’s running mate, averaging 18.1 points and coming down with 10.7 rebounds in his All-Star season. He finished 11th in MVP voting and was first-team All-Defense.

Eastern Conference Semifinals

The Knicks’ playoffs began against the Capital Bullets, a team they defeated in the semis just a year ago -- when the Bullets were hailed from Baltimore.

Although New York won the series 4-1 the season prior, the Bullets gave the Knicks all they could handle.

The Knicks had an easy 11-point victory in Game 1 before dropping the next two games by a combined 21 points. On the brink of disaster, the Knicks evened the series, defeating the Bullets 101-93 in OT. The Knicks won Game 5 before the Bullets bounced back to force Game 7. In the win-or-go-home scenario, the Knicks defeated the Bullets 91-81 to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.

While DeBusschere was great in the regular season, he wasn't as effective offensively in this series. He averaged just 13.9 points, but helped with 9.6 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. It was Earl Monroe who picked up the scoring slack, averaging 20.1 points -- only behind Frazier's 21.0 points -- 5.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. In the clinching Game 7, Monroe led all scorers with 30 points. 

For the Bullets, Elvin Hayes could not be stopped. He averaged 25.9 points, 15.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists. He was the leading scorer in two games, including his 40-point game in Game 1. 

Eastern Conference Finals

New York would see the Celtics in the ECF for the second consecutive year. However, the results would be reversed.

The Celtics won the series 4-1, defeating the Knicks by double digits in three of the four victories. The eventual champion Celtics were too much for the aging Knicks. Havlicek was the leading scorer in four of the five games in the series, putting up 36 and 33 points in the final two games, respectively. He finished averaging 29.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 5.8 assists. All five starters averaged double-digit points. 

For the Knicks, Frazier averaged 24.6 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.8 assists. DeBusschere started just two of the five games, averaging 9.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists. Phil Jackson would get the other three starts, scoring 14.8 points and coming down with 5.2 rebounds in the series. 

Despite losing, Frazier understood that the Celtics were simply better.

"If we were going to go out, at least we lost to a great team," he said.

Aftermath

The Knicks' championship window closed in 1974, and the following season they looked unrecognizable. 

Willis Reed’s career would end after the 1973-74 season due to chronic knee injuries and DeBusschere (33) retired after losing in the ECF to the Celtics. The result was a 40-42 record and a third-place finish in the Atlantic Division. The Knicks would still make the postseason, but would fall to the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs (2-1). 

A season later, the Knicks were out of the playoffs for the first time since the 1965-66 season.

The 2025-26 Knicks accomplished a feat the franchise hadn’t seen in 53 years: capturing an NBA title.

And while the win made the Knicks the talk of the basketball world and took over NYC for the summer, Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby and the rest of the team now have to defend their title -- another feat the organization hasn’t had to do in quite some time.

"Not being satisfied is the biggest takeaway moving forward," Brunson said of the mindset of trying to repeat. "We just have to find a way to turn the page and move on. Last year we took everything one day at a time. We know what it takes, going through the same mindset for this journey. It's a new journey. It's a different journey. The approach has to be the same, if not better."

But as we gear up for the start of the 2026-27 season, here’s what happened to the Knicks the last time they entered as the defending champions…

Regular Season

The Knicks had an uneven start, going 6-4 across their first 10 games. But the defending champions found their way, finishing the year with a 49-33 record despite a 4-6 record over their final 10 games.

New York helped themselves by putting together six winning streaks of at least four wins. Although they had eight fewer wins than their championship year, they finished with the second-best record in the Eastern Conference, only bested by the Boston Celtics (56-26), who were led by Dave Cowens, John Havlicek and Paul Silas.

Walt Frazier led the team in points (20.5), assists (6.9), steals (2.0) and minutes played (41.7). He finished sixth in MVP voting, was voted into the All-Star Game and made first-team All-NBA and All-Defense.

Dave Debusschere was Frazier’s running mate, averaging 18.1 points and coming down with 10.7 rebounds in his All-Star season. He finished 11th in MVP voting and was first-team All-Defense.

Eastern Conference Semifinals

The Knicks’ playoffs began against the Capital Bullets, a team they defeated in the semis just a year ago -- when the Bullets were hailed from Baltimore.

Although New York won the series 4-1 the season prior, the Bullets gave the Knicks all they could handle.

The Knicks had an easy 11-point victory in Game 1 before dropping the next two games by a combined 21 points. On the brink of disaster, the Knicks evened the series, defeating the Bullets 101-93 in OT. The Knicks won Game 5 before the Bullets bounced back to force Game 7. In the win-or-go-home scenario, the Knicks defeated the Bullets 91-81 to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.

While DeBusschere was great in the regular season, he wasn't as effective offensively in this series. He averaged just 13.9 points, but helped with 9.6 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. It was Earl Monroe who picked up the scoring slack, averaging 20.1 points -- only behind Frazier's 21.0 points -- 5.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. In the clinching Game 7, Monroe led all scorers with 30 points. 

For the Bullets, Elvin Hayes could not be stopped. He averaged 25.9 points, 15.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists. He was the leading scorer in two games, including his 40-point game in Game 1. 

Eastern Conference Finals

New York would see the Celtics in the ECF for the second consecutive year. However, the results would be reversed.

The Celtics won the series 4-1, defeating the Knicks by double digits in three of the four victories. The eventual champion Celtics were too much for the aging Knicks. Havlicek was the leading scorer in four of the five games in the series, putting up 36 and 33 points in the final two games, respectively. He finished averaging 29.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 5.8 assists. All five starters averaged double-digit points. 

For the Knicks, Frazier averaged 24.6 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.8 assists. DeBusschere started just two of the five games, averaging 9.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists. Phil Jackson would get the other three starts, scoring 14.8 points and coming down with 5.2 rebounds in the series. 

Despite losing, Frazier understood that the Celtics were simply better.

"If we were going to go out, at least we lost to a great team," he said.

Aftermath

The Knicks' championship window closed in 1974, and the following season they looked unrecognizable. 

Willis Reed’s career would end after the 1973-74 season due to chronic knee injuries and DeBusschere (33) retired after losing in the ECF to the Celtics. The result was a 40-42 record and a third-place finish in the Atlantic Division. The Knicks would still make the postseason, but would fall to the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs (2-1). 

A season later, the Knicks were out of the playoffs for the first time since the 1965-66 season.