Getty Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart, Joel Embiid, Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are scheduled to face off against the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday, February 25.
In a recent interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer, Joel Embiid noted how the Sixers aren’t worried about either Boston or the Milwaukee Bucks – the top two teams in the Eastern Conference record-wise, and instead, will be focusing on their own game throughout the final stretch of the season.
Focused on an #NBA playoff push, Joel Embiid says #Sixers ‘not worried about Boston or Milwaukee’ t.co/Y9RhrXhL6n via @phillyinquirer
“We’re not worried about Boston or Milwaukee,” Embiid said. “We are worried about ourselves. We can get better every single night. We can take this experience that we had [Thursday] and try to be better.”
Nick Wright Believes Joel Embiid Is Boston’s Kryptonite
When speaking on a February 21 episode of ‘First Things First,’ Fox Sports analyst Nick Wright detailed why he believes Embiid will be Boston’s kryptonite this season.
“As good as Boston is, I don’t think they’ll have an answer for is Joel Embiid. He’s going to break through. Embiid, Dominique Wilkins & Bernard King are the best players ever to not make a conference finals.”
— @getnickwright on why he’s sticking with the 76ers to win the East:
“As good as Boston is, the one thing I think Boston would not have an answer for is Joel Embiid down on the block. And, here’s the one other part of it is an eventuality belief, rather than ‘Philly’s definitely the best team’ belief. At some point, Joel Embiid is going to break through,” Wright said.
While the Celtics don’t boast a big man at the level of Embiid, they do have a genuinely deep rotation of centers that can all hurt opposing teams in a multitude of ways. Between Al Horford, Robert Williams, Grant Williams, Blake Griffin, and Mike Muscala, the Celtics should have enough strength in depth to handle the physically imposing presence of Embiid throughout a 48-minute contest.
Celtics Could Regret Settling for Mike Muscala
Despite rumors linking the Celtics with a trade for Jakob Poeltl around the February 9 trade deadline, the veteran big man ended up heading to the Toronto Raptors, with the Celtics pivoting to a deal for Mike Muscala as a result.
According to Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley, the Celtics could come to regret not pushing harder for Poeltl, or another starting-caliber big man, especially if they have to face Embiid in the post-season or they lose one of their starting centers to injury.
MIKE MUSCALA THROWS IT DOWN 😈
(and gets his first technical ever…?😳)
“He’ll be helpful to have for this stretch run. He can handle a handful of minutes every night, and he shouldn’t look over his skis if needed for a spot start…Adding Muscala was a low-cost way of adding depth, but given Williams’ ongoing struggles with staying upright, the Celtics might wish they pushed harder for a center and found someone they’d be comfortable starting in a playoff series,” Buckley wrote.
Still, the Celtics are one of the deepest teams in the NBA, and Muscala’s addition fits the system that Joe Mazzulla has implemented this season. As such, Boston will feel confident in their ability to match up with anyone, especially a team they have already defeated on two occasions this season.