The NBA world faced a seismic shift when Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum returned to action after a torn Achilles was meant to keep him sidelined all season. For the Cleveland Cavaliers, the road to the NBA Finals had suddenly gotten a lot more treacherous.
Fast forward to the Playoffs, and Tatum was already looking close to his prime self. He was posting triple doubles to end the regular season, and the Celtics were favorites to win the Eastern Conference Finals. Cleveland's saving grace was that their position as the four seed would keep them from encountering Boston until the conference finals.
In round one, the Celtics matched up with the Philadelphia 76ers after a season plagued with injuries left Philly's star Joel Embiid out of action for most of the year and the start of the Playoffs. Boston took a commanding 3-1 series lead, but Embiid's return shifted the tides. The Sixers' game two victory looked like a fluke when the Celtics came back to win two straight, but games five and six embarrassed Boston and shifted all momentum in Philadelphia's favor.
To secure a game seven, Philadelphia routed Boston with a 106-93 victory in Xfinity Mobile Arena. Each of the Sixers' starters scored in double digits with Tyrese Maxey and Paul George leading the charge, scoring 30 and 23, respectively. Embiid tallied 19 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, showing an unparalleled level of expertise when picking apart Boston's defense.
Every Cavaliers fan should be rooting for Philadelphia
Philly is not an easy team to celebrate, especially if you harbor grievances with Embiid's foul-baiting antics and the franchise's position as a rival contender out East. If the Sixers can dismantle the Celtics enough to force a game seven in round one, Clevelanders should be cheering on the 76ers and offer a city-wide sense of relief that Boston is already out of the running.
With both the Celtics and Detroit Pistons floundering to start the Playoffs, Cleveland's own struggles against the Toronto Raptors is suddenly less bleak. If the Cavs can capitalize on their 3-2 series advantage and win game six, Cleveland can enter the second round with confidence that the East is still theirs for the taking.
Even if the Celtics edge past the Sixers, the Cavs have plenty of lessons to take from the series and expose in an ECF series. Boston's defense has lost some of its strength. The Sixers are attacking Nikola Vucevic in the paint and using an onslaught of cutters, rim runners and open shooters to overwhelm the Celtics.
Rookie guard VJ Edgecombe is having a breakout series, averaging 13.8 points per game and showcasing phenomenal defensive talent. Paul George is back to near-prime form on defense, putting each Boston player through hell for any open shot.
Cleveland can beat this Boston team
If there is any reason for the Cavaliers to hope Boston wins, it is Philly's defense. If the Cavs square up with the Sixers in the conference finals, managing to break through their defense would be a major hurdle. Cleveland has already seen the impact of comign up short on offense and allowing easy transition points on the other end against Toronto. The youth, athleticism and energy that possesses the Sixers' roster could stifle the Cavaliers.
Against the Celtics, the Cavaliers might actually hold the advantage. Jaylen Brown's game six dud was filled with careless offensive mistakes, turnovers and unnecessary fouls. Derrick White and Payton Pritchard were far from the defensive stalwarts that occupied the Boston backcourt in their Finals run when Jrue Holiday was in town. Without Holiday and Al Horford, Boston's depth in the backcourt and frontcourt is shallow enough that Cleveland can withstand the Celtics.
This season was supposed to be a reset year without Tatum for the Celtics, but Brown's MVP-worthy heroics not only kept Boston afloat but vaulted them back to contender status. In the offseason, Boston prepared for a bad year and avoided the second apron by trading away Kristaps Porzingis and Holiday. The frontcourt was diminished after Horford left for the Golden State Warriors.
Trading for Vucevic was not enough to rebuild the frontcourt, and the Celtics' overall depth chart lacks the two-way versatility it once did.
If the Cavaliers face the Celtics, Cleveland's big men can punish the Celtics. James Harden and Donovan Mitchell will face plenty of challenges to score, but the Sixers are putting together the blueprint: attack open lanes quickly and force Boston to foul.
The Cleveland Cavaliers and the fan base are witnessing the collapse of the Eastern Conference's titan. Cleveland might be facing their own troubles against the Raptors, but they can feel a glimmer of hope as the rest of the conference is exposed for their flaws just as much. If the Celtics can give up a 3-1 lead, there is no team the Cavaliers cannot beat.
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