Turns out the Sixers lost Game 1 because of the schedule, not because the Knicks crushed their souls into dust.

Let’s see if having a bit of rest helps the Philly Numbers, or if they keep crumbling.

Fresh Bulletin now, Game 2 later.

Mike Brown

On coaching under the Finals-or-bust pressure:

“People have talked about a mandate — like I’m coaching to win. It doesn’t matter what others say. I’m disappointed if we’re not in the Finals and having a chance to win it.”

On embracing expectations once he signed with New York:

“The opportunity for this job came open, and I was just intrigued by the players. I was intrigued by being in New York, calling Madison Square Garden my home court, being around the fans, hanging with [team president] Leon Rose who I’ve known for many years. He’s just a fantastic human being. And being around the players on that roster, and that’s all I looked at it as. The mandate and all that other stuff, like that’s what I expect, that’s what I want to do, and hopefully it can happen, but who knows.”

On the need for improvement after Game 1:

“We’re playing well at the right time, but I think we have room to grow. We can’t give up 34 free throws like we did last night. It’s gonna be tough if you give up 34 free throws. We had 15 turnovers last night. We can’t have 15 turnovers against this team because they thrive at the free-throw line, they thrive in the steal game, they convert those turnovers into points really quickly. And they didn’t shoot well. We know they’re gonna shoot better. We know that [Tyrese] Maxey is gonna be more aggressive, so we have to be even more alert than what we were in our last game.”

On guarding Maxey and Embiid without fouling:

“Maxey and Embiid are really, really good at drawing fouls. Maxey’s speed, he’s gonna drive and he’s gonna attack your chest. Most of them you can’t lead with your hands, you gotta lead with your chest. You hope that the referee sees that at times, we’re not initiating the contact, but we can’t put ourselves in the position to put the whistle on the referees’ hands of making a call or no call. So we gotta do a better job of leading with our chest and showing our hands. Shot fake, shot fake, and he can still shoot it whether its from two or three. We have to be disciplined and we have to stay down and figure out how to be the second jumper while having tests from behind and stuff like that. But we can’t send those guys to the free-throw line – and the rest of their team – 34 times and expect to get a win, especially if we only go 17.”

On Maxey’s point-of-attack challenge:

“The biggest thing when guarding Maxey at the point of attack is, he just moves so well and he can score from all three levels. His quickness, his athleticism for his size, is second to none. Because he can score from all three levels, so you have to give a multiple effort on every single possession. Because when he gives it up, you best bet that he’s gonna get it back at some point during that possession if not right away.”

On offering condolences to Nick Nurse:

“I’d like to pass my condolences along to Nick Nurse and his family, his brother’s family, and all their friends. Life is precious, and you don’t wish that upon anybody.”

Josh Hart

On the Game 1 blowout not meaning that much:

“I mean, it’s pretty easy because yesterday is irrelevant. Only thing that matters right now is the present. We got to make sure we’re focused, have good attention to detail, make sure we’re prepared for tomorrow. You know, that’s a good team. Obviously, they had an emotional Game 7, and I don’t know what their travel schedule is like and all that, but I’m sure they probably didn’t even go home. They probably went straight here. They had physical and exhausting series in travel. So, they’re gonna try to get their legs under them and come out with energy tomorrow. So we gotta make sure we don’t just match that, but exceed it.”

On being the favorites against the Sixers:

“Being the favorite means literally nothing. Every game you have to come in with a focus and attention to detail. And if you don’t do that, you can lose anybody in this league. We feel like we can beat anybody, but it’s that mentality that you have to go out there and be present every single day. Not worried about the past, because that’s irrelevant. Not worried about what the future holds, because you have no idea. It’s about us being in the present. So we don’t really care too much about being favorites or All Stars, All-NBA and all, because at the end of the day, none of that really matters. And none of that matters if you win. No one remembers the leading scorer or how many All Stars you had or how many NBA, All-NBA [honors you had]. They remember you being a champion, and that’s obviously the goal.”

On Brunson’s head size comments from Kelly Oubre:

“I feel like that was something that is very well documented. So I don’t think that was any shocker when he said that one.”

On Mikal Bridges and Miles McBride guarding Maxey:

“That was huge. Both of those guys obviously are blessed enough athletically to be able to keep up with him, use their physicality, use their length to their advantage. Maxey obviously is an offense unto himself, being able to break out and transition. You know, he’s tough, so they did an amazing job on him and have to continue it.”

Deuce McBride

On guarding Tyrese Maxey as a team:

“I feel like the whole team was just locked in, honestly. Mikal started off on him really well and then I came in, but there were times where other guys were matched up with him, and all of our antennas are up just guarding him as a team.”

On staying locked in during the series:

“Man, give God the glory. Can’t take it for granted being here. We’ve been here. We’ve lost. We’ve been up. We’ve been down. This is an experienced group, so we just can’t take it for granted. We’re locked in.”

On targeting Embiid in pick-and-roll:

“A lot of it is just reading and reacting.”

Jalen Brunson

On finding rhythm in Game 1:

“Most importantly, the ball was going in, and I got in a rhythm. My teammates did a good job with setting screens and getting me open.”

Nick Nurse

On the lack of rookie jitters from Edgecombe:

“Not very often. There’s been one or two brief moments. I think in the playoff game in Orlando, he took some wild shots. But it’s better than him turning them down.”

On the Game 1 defensive struggles:

“We have to wash that one away and get back and provide a bunch more energy and physicality. I just felt like we were a full step slower defensively. We just seemed like we were chasing everything, didn’t guard the ball well enough, didn’t contest shooters well enough. They were obviously picking us apart, just moving a lot better than we were. I think it was a pretty tough night for everybody. I didn’t think we shot it particularly well, but I don’t think we generated good enough shots. We’re gonna have to figure out how to run more offense to get some of the same looks we got in the past series. Obviously it’s a new series. We gotta figure it out.”

Kelly Oubre Jr.

On Brunson’s “big head”:

“I just know he has a big head. He’s got the braids. He’s a very smart, tactical player, so he uses all that to his advantage. Hey, I’ll be there. He can whip me [with his braids] all he wants, but he’s not getting free like that.”

On bouncing back from the Game 1 loss:

“We kind of started the Boston series off like this, right? But we made adjustments. We got better each and every game, so I expect the same from this series. Only up from here.”

On the Game 1 loss links to the quick turnaround after Game 7 in Boston:

“It was a quick turnaround. We had to travel, didn’t have a full practice before the game. In my time, I remember in the playoffs, you always had at least a practice before the game. If we were able to get some rest, get some recovery, and then get a good practice in…we would’ve been a little bit more prepared. But we don’t make the schedule. We just have to go out there and play.”

VJ Edgecombe

On his rookie season extending into the second round of the playoffs:

“Obviously, this is a dream. I didn’t imagine it to happen so fast like this.”

On adjusting to guarding Brunson:

“He’s a great player, so he’s going to make adjustments. Now, it’s time for me to make adjustments on how I guard him. Just play hard, fight through, just try to make sure I don’t get hit by any screens. Just try my best to stay in front of him and make him make difficult shots.”

On embracing the unpredictability in playoffs:

“You live for surprises. It’s hard to set high expectations and think you are going to fulfill all your expectations. I didn’t set crazy high expectations for myself. I just wanted to play basketball. I’m glad I’m in the position I’m in.”

Tyrese Maxey

On not overreacting to the Game 1 loss:

“If we lose by seven points, or 70 points, it doesn’t really matter. They won one game and we lost one game. We’re gonna make some adjustments and we’ll be ready for Game 2. Game 1 doesn’t carry over to Game 2.”

Paul George

On the emotional toll of the Celtics series and the need for adjustments vs. New York:

“We can’t use the fatigue as an excuse. But it has been an emotional roller coaster. You go from a Game 7, you get one day off and then you’re right back into another matchup. I think there was some carryover of us trying to get up and trying to get prepared for this next matchup. But we definitely should have come out and did a better job.”

On settling in after the Game 1 blowout loss:

“Just get settled in. Yeah, we had breakdowns but they also shot the (expletive) out of the ball. You know, they were hot. They came out hot, they came out on fire. But it’s a game of adjustments. We’ll make adjustments; see what we need to get better at. It’s the same as last series. It’s one. They don’t get any extra points for going up big [in Game 1]. We’ll be ready for Game 2.”

Aristotle “Telly” Hatzigeorgiou

On NYC restaurants banning Philly cheesesteaks:

“We just sat around, and all of a sudden we see the word ‘Philly’ there, and we’re like, ‘ugh!’ Teeth are grinding, and we didn’t want anything Philly that’s weak. We wanted strong NYC grit. Not a weak Philly cheesesteak.”

BOSTON — Three days after the Celtics’ early playoff elimination, Brad Stevens sat down in front of the media for his longest press conference of the year, touching on a slew of questions ranging from the team’s offensive play style, reports that Jaylen Brown is unhappy with the organization, Jayson Tatum’s Game 7 sidelining, and much more.

Here’s the crux of what Brad Stevens had to say — and some of my instant reactions to his comments.

On Tracy McGrady’s recent comments about Jaylen Brown:

Tracy McGrady made headlines late Tuesday night when he shared on his podcast that Jaylen Brown is frustrated with the Boston Celtics.

“His frustration lies deeply in the organization that we don’t have the details to,” McGrady said. “There’s just been a lot of stuff that I’ve been hearing, just going on with the Boston organization with JB.”

McGrady, a former NBA superstar, is a prominent member of the media and an NBC analyst. But he’s also long been a mentor and close friend of Brown’s, so his words carry more weight than most.

While he didn’t offer specifics, his comments raised eyebrows, particularly in that they came on the heels of a Jaylen Brown saying this was his favorite-ever Celtic season on a Twitch stream on the day following the team’s elimination.

As such, the first question Stevens fielded was about T-Mac’s comments regarding Brown’s grievances.

“I talked to Jaylen Monday a little bit after —  real quickly, and it was nothing but positive,” Stevens said. “He has not expressed those frustrations to me. We’ve been here 10 years together. Obviously, I love JB, and everybody around here loves JB, and just like any of our other guys, as we get to the end of the season, I’ll be here, and my door is always open, and if anybody ever wants to come in and talk about it — and talk about their team, their place, whatever the case may be, I’m all ears. And that would be 1-16, not just Jaylen, not just Jayson, not just the guys that have been here. I think it’s really important to be available. So I certainly am, and none of that has been expressed to me.”

My reaction: Would Stevens air out private conversations of frustration from his star player? Probably not. So, while I was glad this question was asked, Stevens’ answer did not provide assurance that the organization and Brown are on good footing. I don’t have insight into Brown’s frustrations, but between the Twitch stream and T-Mac’s comments, there may be something there. I imagine we’ll learn more in the weeks to come.

On the Celtics’ first-round loss to the 76ers:

The Celtics blew a 3-1 lead for the first time in franchise history, but they were also just a few fourth-quarter shots away from advancing in Game 7.

How did Stevens reckon with that duality?

He took it upon himself to address the series loss before even taking any questions.

“I thought we really struggled to generate good looks against Philly,” he said. “I thought they deserved to win. I thought on the other end, they made it really hard on us, and really kind of felt in control in a lot of ways, especially as Embiid got his legs under him. I thought that probably one of the defining things that they did to us in games five through seven was they cleaned up the glass, which had been a real boost for us. Our first-shot offense wasn’t very good the whole series, but we really got a lot of good looks on second chances and off the glass, and I thought they did a really good job. So I think overall, obviously, we had chances to win, and I’m sure there’ll be specific questions about that, but I thought overall, Philly deserved to win, and played a great series and made it hard on us.”

My reaction: I was a little bit surprised at how candid Stevens was about the team’s first-round shortcomings — he clearly felt like Philadelphia was the better team, and that the Celtics didn’t just miss shots — they struggled to generate good looks. That’s a key difference from what Joe Mazzulla maintained after Game 7.

On the Celtics’ play-style and three-point-heavy offense:

Are the Celtics too reliant on three-point shooting? That’s been the million-dollar question for years now, and this year’s postseason performance re-surfaced those conversations. Stevens fielded at least four questions on the topic, and here’s what he had to say.

Do the Celtics shoot too many threes?

“I look at more of each shot individually, and my general feeling watching us play, in really each of the last two playoffs, in the second-round against New York, even against Orlando in the first round, was, we had a hard time generating really good looks on that first shot,” he said. “So, we got to figure out a way to do better in that. And I think that that’s again, one of the things that we’ve got to figure out is how to have more of an impact at the rim. And I think we do need to add to our team to do that. Everybody plays a role in that. But, at the end of that game, Embiid is standing at the rim on all those possessions, or a lot of those possessions, right? And so I thought the shots we took, with the exception of Jaylen’s top-of-the-key-three and the one where you get in the middle of the lane, and then Payton’s open shot, I thought they were really well defended. I thought we struggled to get to where we wanted to go on offense a lot of the series, but it was particularly in those last four games, when those four perimeter defenders who are all very good, had Embiid standing behind them.”

Asked about three-point shooting again, he double-downed:

“The biggest thing is: can we generate looks at the rim?” Stevens said. “Yeah, everybody wants to do that, and every one of us would prefer a dunk over that, over a three. Every single one of us. Those are hard to get, and we struggle to generate them, and so, yeah, we certainly shot some bad ones. I’m not telling you we didn’t. There’s no question about that. But I also thought we shot some really hard shots at the rim, really hard shots in the midrange too, and I don’t necessarily fault anyone for that, other than credit to Philly’s defense, and we’ve got to do a good job as we build out the roster to have more options.”

My reaction: In Brad Stevens’ eyes, this is not an issue of making or missing shots. He doesn’t believe the Celtics have been able to sufficiently generate good looks in their first-shot offense, and clearly said that’s been an issue in their last three playoff serieses. At the same time, it’s evident to me he feels like it’s a reflection of roster shortcomings: “We need to add to our team to do that.” This line of questioning, more than anything, made me feel like Stevens feels that the roster needs significant upgrades.

On Jayson Tatum coming back and then missing Game 7:

Jayson Tatum returned to the lineup 10 months after rupturing his Achilles tendon, was excellent to close the regular season, and was in the midst of a very good first-round series against the 76ers before he injured his knee and had to miss Game 7.

Stevens fielded multiple questions about the left knee stiffness that held him out of the biggest game of the year, providing context on what Tatum was dealing with.

“You probably could see it at the end of Game 6,” Stevens said. “We thought that it would dissipate and be okay the next day. He didn’t do very much on Friday, just rested, and then came in on Saturday morning and tried to do a workout. I watched it, and [he] clearly didn’t feel right.  I think it’s not like a long, long-term concern, but it certainly didn’t look right when he was working out, and didn’t feel right. So, it made sense to be smart about that. The obvious answer is, anytime you’re coming back from an injury like he was coming from, there’s a tendency to overcompensate, and there’s probably a little bit of that there.”

He was also asked about Tatum’s heavy minutes in the weeks leading up to Game 7, and about whether that could have contributed to his sidelining.

“We did try to ramp him up for more playoff load and playoff minutes towards the end of the regular season, including a couple of the games there late where we kept him in, even though the games weren’t necessarily close, just to get his minutes up,” he said. “And that’s a part of this kind of load management era that we have a lot of discussions about, because I think Phil Coles and his group do a great job. And a big part of that is they say you have to be ready to play those kinds of meaningful minutes in those kinds of meaningful moments. Do we think that that had an impact on his knee stiffness and the injury in Game 6? Hard to tell, but you can’t cross it off. So we have to look at that. I know that they will, but I feel really comfortable that they worked their butts off to try to get everybody on the court, and they did an amazing job with JT, and he did an amazing job all year, and to be able to play a lot if needed.”

My reaction: This was always a risk, and it’s unfortunate that Tatum had to miss the biggest game of the year. But, I don’t think he or the team has any regrets about the way his return-to-play was handled, and ultimately, there was no real harm done: Tatum did not get seriously hurt, proved to himself he’s still the guy he was before the injury, and should be good to go and fully rested to begin next season.

On Joe Mazzulla’s future with the Celtics:

Stevens was asked about the job that Joe Mazzulla has done over the past four years and what his future holds.

“First of all, I know how hard that job is, and I know all that goes into it,” he said. “And I know he and his staff are putting everything they can into it. And when I say that we struggle to get by — I think that’s, again, that’s — we need to add to our team. So, I think our coaching staff, like all of us, can continue to improve and get better. That said, I think they’re very good. And we need to continue to provide them the resources to grow, and to get better, and to continue to be the best that we can be. I don’t think we can ignore, and certainly, again, can’t ignore anything, the good and the bad. But there was a lot of growth this year, and I thought that there [were] a lot of things that we can build off of, even though that ending was disappointing.”

My reaction: I don’t think Joe Mazzulla is on the immediate hot seat, and Stevens said multiple times that the coaching staff did a good job. That being said, this was not a ringing, resounding endorsement (he could have gone further in discussing Joe’s coaching tenure positively), and it’s clear that Stevens expects Mazzulla — like everyone — will get better.

The Eastern Conference was unpredictable during the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs thanks to three seven-games series and the upset loss of the No. 2 seed Boston Celtics.

The conference’s frenzied first round also changed FanDuel’s market for 2025-26 NBA Eastern Conference Finals MVP. Superstar Celtics like Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown were previously among the favorites for the media-voted award before their untimely first-round dismissal.

The wide-open race in the East, coupled with Boston’s elimination, means three players are ahead of the pack for the Larry Bird Award. New York Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson (+160) is the current favorite after averaging just over 26 points per game in the first round against Atlanta. Continuing a string of strong postseason runs, Brunson’s consistency and high usage gives him considerable traction with the Knicks as the conference’s new favorites.

Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham slightly trails Brunson on the heels of a terrific first round against Orlando. With Detroit trailing 3-1 in the series, Cunningham took over and averaged 36.3 points per game in the final three games of the series — helping the Pistons recapture their confidence in the process. Cunningham now sits at +200, behind only Brunson in the Eastern Conference.

Donovan Mitchell (+600) from the Cleveland Cavaliers sits third in the market for Eastern Conference Finals MVP. Although Cleveland moved past Toronto in the first round, the Raptors made Mitchell work and held him to 23.1 points per game and 43 percent shooting after Mitchell put up 27.9 points on 48 percent shooting in the regular season. Cunningham and Mitchell will battle in the second round for a spot in the Eastern Conference Finals with the winner likely gaining a significant market boost in the process.

After a noticeable decline in the odds, the secondary list of contenders is still filled with All-Stars capable of taking over a playoff series. Karl-Anthony Towns (+1200) played improved defense for the Knicks while closing out the Hawks. But Towns was third in scoring for the Atlanta series behind Brunson and guard OG Anunoby — hurting Towns’ potential case for a series MVP award.

Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid (+1700) must stay healthy and eliminate the No. 2 seed Knicks in the second round to even make the Eastern Conference Finals. But a healthy Embiid is still a force after averaging 29 points per game in four games against Boston.

Similar to Embiid’s candidacy, 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey (+3000) needs to first get past New York in the second round to even garner serious ECF MVP consideration. But if Maxey’s stellar play against Boston is any indication, the high-scoring guard is capable of putting up points in bunches after averaging just under 27 points per game in the series.

A few other notable names to consider for Eastern Conference Finals MVP includes Knicks two-way threat OG Anunoby (+3300), Cavaliers veteran guard James Harden (+3500), and Cleveland big man Evan Mobley (+5500).

Knicks fans got a little too wild outside of Madison Square Garden after Game 1, but J.R. Smith is surviving.

The former Knick talked about how social media is the real culprit for why it took so long for him to get up as a pack of wild fans nearly trampled him Monday night after the Knicks beat the 76ers.

“The Knicks fans saw JR walking and they couldn’t believe it, man,” former Knicks teammate Iman Shumpert said to Smith on an episode of “Run it Back.” “They gave him love. They gave him too much love and knocked him down in front of Madison Square [Garden]. Legendary performance.”

Smith responded: “The worst part about it is in this society, man, they’re so bad. Everybody just has their phone out, and I’m like, ‘Yo, bro, pull me up. Come on, dog.'”

Smith joked that he “needed some help” and was looking for Shumpert to come to his rescue.

Knicks fans were going wild after a 137-98 victory, and when they saw Smith outside the arena, they crowded him and nearly trampled the former NBA star.

Smith repeatedly told the fans to “relax” as they piled on top of him, but that did not stop them from crowding him.

The former Knicks guard, who played for the team from 2011-15 when the Knicks were a strong Eastern Conference contender with Mike Woodson as coach and Carmelo Anthony leading the charge, did not specify whether he would attend Game 2 following the dangerous encounter.

Shumpert and Smith were also teammates on the Cavaliers’ championship team in 2016 after a trade from the Knicks at the trade deadline.

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The Knicks will look to keep their torrid pace going with Game 2 on Wednesday night at home.

The Nature Boy is very upset with the Lakers’ wonder boy.

After Luka Doncic missed Game 1 of Los Angeles’ conference semifinals matchup with the Thunder on Tuesday night due to a hamstring strain, Ric Flair laid into the point guard for not playing injured.

“@lukadoncic,” the wrestling legend wrote on his X page as Oklahoma City dismantled the Lakers, 108-90, “Please Get In The Game! Take A Shot Of Cortisone And Deal With The Pain! They Are Paying You 50 Million A Year, And You’re Not There! WTF!”

Flair then went on to say he was so ticked over the matter, he hopes LA trades the 27-year-old this offseason.

“Nobody Wants A Lame Duck On Their Team!” he said.

Following backlash, Flair fired off another message about the situation early Wednesday morning, and while he softened a bit, he nonetheless remained critical of Doncic.

“FYI-,” Flair wrote, “Obviously They Are Not Going To Trade Luka. He’s Their Future. He’s Their Franchise. But Do The Math- He Averages 33 Points A Game. If He Has 20, LeBron @KingJames Has 27, And The Rest Of The Team- They Win!

“I Would Have Said The Same Thing About @jaytatum0 On The @celtics, But I’m Not A Boston Fan. For 46 Million Dollars A Year, I Think You Can Play! Everyone Is Allowed To Have Their Own Opinion. And This Is Mine!”

Doncic sustained a Grade 2 hamstring strain during a regular-season game against the Thunder on April 2. He has not suited up since, though he’s taken measures — including traveling overseas for treatment — to get back on the court as soon as possible.

LA head coach JJ Redick said earlier this week he didn’t have “any updates on Luka,” but the six-time All-Star is expected to miss at least one more game of the postseason series with the Thunder.

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