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Red Sox vs White Sox

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CHICAGO – (Wire Service Report) – The Chicago White Sox will greet the visiting Boston Red Sox on Tuesday with a one-game lead atop the American League Central.

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While the White Sox realize they are nowhere near the finish line, they can appreciate the perch in the final week before the All Star-break. Especially on the heels of three straight 100-loss seasons.

“We are in a good spot. It’s exciting and it just shows the kind of growth we are at,” right-hander Davis Martin said. “It doesn’t matter if we are playing bad. We still find a way to find ourselves in every game.

“It’s a great time. We love winning. We do a good job celebrating each other’s successes. We are having fun being ourselves and enjoying it.”

Chicago split a four-game series against the Cleveland Guardians, its closest Central competitor, over the weekend.

A power surge propelled the White Sox to a 7-6 victory in Sunday’s finale. Colson Montgomery and Tristan Peters belted home runs among their two hits while Kyle Teel also went deep.

Red Sox starter Payton Tolle (4-6, 3.39 ERA) will aim to limit the White Sox attack and stop a recent penchant for allowing the long ball.

Pitching against the Washington Nationals on Wednesday, Tolle was unable to build upon his previous start — seven one-hit innings during a 6-1 victory on June 26 against the New York Yankees. Washington reached him for six runs and seven hits — including two homers — in three innings in a home loss.

Tolle figured to adjust the mechanics on his four-seam fastball after finding the Nationals “were ready for it.”

“I think I was also probably just being too fine,” he added, “trying to hit spots rather than just trying to execute pitches and just flying through the zone.”

Boston’s loss to Washington marked a rare recent blip for a club that is jelling under interim manager Chad Tracy. Although the Red Sox still occupy the AL East basement, they’ve won eight of 10 after completing a three-game sweep of the Los Angeles Angels to begin a nine-game road trip before the break.

On Sunday, Boston overcame an early injury to All-Star left-hander Ranger Suarez to defeat the host Angels 7-5. Jarren Duran and Willson Contreras homered.

Contreras leads the Red Sox with 20 home runs, a milestone he has reached seven times.

“This year has been good to me,” Contreras said. “Of course, I’ve been doing my homework. I put the work in the cage and my mindset is still there.”

Rookie left-hander Noah Schultz (2-5, 5.86) is set to get the call for the White Sox. Schultz returned from right knee patellar tendinitis on Wednesday at Baltimore but endured the same result as his two previous starts before the injury: he lost.

Schultz has hurt his own cause with control issues and has a WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) of 1.35.

Against the Orioles, Schultz allowed two runs and three hits in 4 1/3 innings with four walks and seven strikeouts. He has walked 26 batters and hit four with a pitch in 43 total innings.

He has yielded a home run in three consecutive starts and four of the past five. He has allowed five total homers.

Tolle is set to face Chicago for the first time in his career. Schultz has not previously opposed Boston.

–Field Level Media

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | July 5

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By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – It was very hot this week in Boston. In fact, most of the nation was hot, humid and quite still. There were some thundershowers and there was a full moon, too, a Strawberry Moon. When there’s a full moon, people get weird. Strange things happen – usually bad things – the kind of things you regret when the moon sets and the sun rises.

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For the full moon of July 1, 2026 – it’ll be four parts regret and no parts forget. It was a bad day in Boston Celtics history. It wasn’t Strawberries & Cream, it was reverse Red (Auerbach) and Creamed. It was trading in your Rolex to a guy in an alley with a vest full of Patek Philippe knock-offs. It was trading in your Bentley Continental GT Convertible for a broken-down 2014 Ford Taurus, a car – up on blocks with no wheels.

This trade reminded you of that guy in your fantasy football league who trades Josh Allen for Mac Jones and Nick Folk, and he thinks he got the best of the deal. It was like turning down a romantic dinner-for-two in Vegas with Julia Roberts for a last row show ticket to see Weird Al Yankovic in Reno.

It was so bad, the Celtics might have to bring in Nico Harrison to blame for suggesting the trade heard ‘round the Commonwealth.

Trade?

No, it was more like a smash and grab.

In the deal, the 76ers received:

  • Jaylen Brown, second team All-NBA and No. 6 in the MVP voting

The Celtics took a door prize which included:

  • Paul George, 36 year old, drafted in 2010, but 9x NBA All-Star
  • 2028 first-round pick* with contingencies
  • 2031 first-round pick (via PHI)
  • 2028 second-round pick (best of GSW/OKC/MIL)
  • 2030 second-round pick (best of WAS/POR/PHX)

Add-ons, the Celtics get:

  • Two tickets to see “No, No Nanette” at The Wilbur
  • A box of Mike’s Pastries from the North End
  • Two tickets to NBA Cup finale at Hinkle Fieldhouse
  • $25 gift card for WaWa
  • $50 coupon good for Cheesesteaks at Jim’s (South Street)

As of the 4th of July, speculation was that Celtics GM Brad Stevens had a “Plan B” in his back pocket, some other move to be made to make sense of the nonsensical deal to ship Brown down the Schuylkill River. The transactions for the start of the 2026-27 season can’t be announced until July 6 at Noon when teams can officially sign contracts under the guise of the 2026-27 Team Salary rules.

Thoughts, please? Any ideas? We’re all ears.

It wasn’t as much as realizing the Celtics dealt Brown, it was the fact they took so little in return.

Maybe it’s retribution by the Sixers to make up for the ill-fated 2017 swap of draft picks that the club used to draft Markelle Fultz at No. 1 while Danny Ainge, GM of the Celtics, got his man – Jayson Tatum – at No. 3, anyway.

Are the Sixers righting the wrong of the 1968 and 1981 Playoffs when the Celtics came back from 3-to-1 game deficits to win a pair of important playoff series vs. Philly?

No.

This is the cold, new reality of the ultimate in salary dumps, the dark backbone of the NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement which drives the league’s entire set of basketball-related operations.

Brown was on the Celtics’ books for three more seasons at some $185 million, and the club was bound to extend him one more year come July 27. Paul George has two years at $114.3m (approx. $54 and $56m). By doing the deal, it saved the Celtics $71m plus another $142m over two additional years that the extension would provide. Now, the Sixers will need to negotiate that extension. At the end of the fray, that’s $213m the Celtics will keep in their coffers, or utilize to sign other free agents.

Yes, in the end, it’s all about the math and money, not the players. It’s the (possible) move backwards before (potentially) moving forward. Pay them now, or pay them later? Brad Stevens is at the poker table called the “Summer of ‘26.”

Note: Celtics’ President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens and the team’s Lead club Owner and Governor Bill Chisholm will meet the media on Monday, July 6 at 4:00pm (EDT).

This season, there’s no 4th of July “invitation only” cookout and meet & greets for teams to line up at the East Hampton (LI) digs of a Kevin Durant. There was no long line outside of LeBron James’ door, not any “The Decision” TV specials.

The Boston vs Miami for a trade for the services of Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo was the highlight of the off-season. Whatever James decided to do will be a great story for the one city/team he chooses. Most of the NBA will shrug at the news, wishing him well and awaiting the release of the 2026-27 NBA schedule to circle the date for a rocking chair presentation, a la Dr. J (Julius Erving) and Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar).

For James, who is being courted by Golden state, Cleveland and, now, Philly, I’ll put my money on Cleveland being the final destination, as he’ll look to come full circle and have a legitimate chance to compete with a contender for the 2027 NBA title. No other city really makes sense for LeBron’s swan-song departure from the NBA at this point in time. If Philly steps up, gets James at a veteran’s minimum or some other salary cap exception, it’ll raise eyebrows in New York, San Antonio and Oklahoma City, a.k.a. “The Teams to Beat.”.

One thing is for sure. James will retire from active NBA play as one of the all-time greats, to be compared to Michael Jordan or Elgin Baylor or Oscar Robertson, or even to the greats of the 80s – Dr. J, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, or even to the great centers like Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain and Abdul-Jabbar.

If James can carry a team to the 2027 NBA Finals and earn another title, he might be placed on top of that glorious list.

An A.I. Dream Team, sans David Robinson, Chris Mullin and Christian Laettner

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: There’s a great series of features of the “The USA’s Top Ten Sports Moments) (over 250 years) and it’s been posted on Substack at a pace of “one a day” leading up the the 4th by author Adam Steinmetz.

One peek is a quote about Larry Bird’s participation for the USA in Portland, Monte Carlo and Barcelona: “Larry was the ultimate teammate. He affected the game just by being in the huddle, and it was very obvious. They didn’t need any rah-rah, but his presence was very noticeable.”

One of the very best editions of the Top Ten is the 4th of July entry about the great Lou Gehrig. Says Steinmetz, “Four score and seven years ago, on this exact date in 1939, a great American delivered one of the most famous speeches in the 250-year history of the United States. His opening line reverberated beyond baseball. His speech echoed beyond sports.

“Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.” – Gehrig

Born Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig in 1903, Gehrig, along with Babe Ruth, became one of the greatest baseball players (and athletes) the game had ever seen. So sadly on May 2, 1939, Gehrig took himself out of the New York Yankees’ line-up and ended a record 2,130 consecutive games played streak (it was since passed by Cal Ripken – 2,632). Gehrig was later diagnosed with the fatal Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (known to most as Lou Gehrig’s disease). Lou Gehrig passed away on June 2, 1941 at the age of 37.

ESPN has done a marvelous job at Wimbledon, thanks to John McEnroe (ESPN)

ESPN COVERAGE OF WIMBLEDON: Serena Williams’ first round loss to Maya Joint averaged 1.8 million viewers on ESPN Tuesday afternoon, helping the network to an average of 937,000 for the full day of coverage — up 55% from last year. It was the network’s most-watched opening round Wimbledon telecast on record. The full opening round, which included Monday’s play, was the most-watched openers on record with an average of 734,000 fans tuning into ESPN’s coverage from England. The last time Williams played in any Grand Slam tournament prior to this year was at the U.S. Open in 2022.

ESPN’s decision to have John McEnroe in the broadcast bunker/booth is the key to the men’s bracket coverage and the anchor to the entire production. Maybe ESPN suits should consider McEnroe as a pairing with Mike Breen (and Jay Bilas) for NBA coverage?

TIDBITS & NUGGETS: The Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) announced the closing of a $100 million Series E financing round led by Ares and Joe Tsai, representing the largest capital raise in the history of professional lacrosse. According to a news release issued by the PLL, the round included a subsequent minority equity investment from ESPN, along with investments from actor, writer and producer Glen Powell, Co-chairman of Wrexham A.F.C, actor and producer Rob Mac (formerly McElhenney), country music singer and songwriter Warren Zeiders, and actor Tony Cavalero. As part of the financing, Co-Head of Ares Sports, Media and Entertainment, Jim Miller, will join the PLL’s Board of Directors.

FIBA U-17 BASKETBALL WORLDS: Although overshadowed by the FIFA World Cup tournament, FIBA is staging its World Cup for Under-17 years old Men in Istanbul. The USA defeated Australia, 114-65, to advance to the gold medal game. In the quarter Final game, Türkiye’s Omer Kutluay poured in 30 points to go with 11 assists and two rebounds in a 94-87 win over France to reach the Semi-Finals. Kutluay, son of former NBAer Abrahim (Seattle Sonics), did not commit a single turnover despite being the focal point of France’s aggressive defense. Omer Kutluay was previously signed by Real Madrid to play for their junior level club. With his U-17 age, he is prime material to be signed by a USA college program. … Serbia defeated Türkiye, 76-71, to advance to the final vs. USA (Sunday, 13:15, local).

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT: Why? We do not know.

  • What ever happened to white wall tires?
  • The two squirrels that live in the trees by our home are nuts. They run around like crazy animals, chasing each other for no reason – Squirrel ZOOMIES!
  • Our dog(s) do not bark, nor care about squirrels. They prefer to bark at other dogs and people.
  • You knew Canada’s World Cup hopes were limited when there was no player named Guy Lafleur on the roster.
  • How can the PGA Tour completely re-do their schedule and not place a tournament at TPC Boston (like the good olde days of the DeutschBank Championship (DBC), Northern Trust and the FedEx Cup Playoffs)?
  • When we toast bread, it’s just “Toast.” But, if we’re talking about bagels, it’s a “toasted bagel,” and not Toast.” … Which brings this post about “Toast” to its key point. Why, when something is done, over, useless, defeated, is it “Toast?”
  • Why doesn’t FIFA lay down a red line and two blue lines for Offsides?
  • Why don’t MLB teams have a top of the 4th inning stretch well ahead of the traditional 7th inning stretch? Everyone definitely needs a stretch before the middle of the 7th.
  • Many of us aspire to compete on Jeopardy! – the great American television game show that tests knowledge in broad areas of concern. Now get this: FOX television is now proudly promoting the Nation’s Dumbest, a new reality competition show. The goal of contestants on the show is to lose. Figures.

PARTING WORDS & MUSIC: And, you ‘all thought I’d go with “Saturday in the Park” by Chicago. The answer is – No.

  • Since I attended two Goose concerts this week, did I see Goose or Geese?
  • In case you didn’t know, Goose and Tedeschi Trucks Band are the two best and most talented bands touring this summer.

Mazzula Wins NBA Coach of Year

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BOSTON – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – The NBA announced Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla was named the 2025-26 NBA Coach of the Year. He becomes the fourth Celtics head coach to win the award (Auerbach, Heinsohn, Fitch), after Mazzulla and his coaching staff steered Boston to the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 56-26 regular season record. Mazzulla takes home his first Red Auerbach Trophy this season with the help of his assistant coaches and staff: Sam Cassell, Tony Dobbins, D.J. MacLeay, Da’Sean Butler, Nana Foulland, Amile Jefferson, Tyler Lashbrook, Craig Luschenat, Ross McMains, Alex Merg, Phil Pressey, God Shammgod Jr., and Steve Tchiengang.
“Thank you to our players who compete and give it everything they have each night,” said Mazzula. “I am grateful for every member of the Celtics organization whose dedication impacts winning every day. This award belongs to our staff, who are there for the guys every day. Their relentless work ethic improves our team daily. This award should be named, staff of the year.”
The NBA Coach of the Year Award trophy is named in honor of Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Red Auerbach. The legendary head coach guided the Celtics to nine NBA championships, including eight in a row from 1959-66.
“This is well deserved recognition and a testament to both Joe and his staff,” said Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens. “With all of our unknowns entering the season, Joe did a fantastic job building and growing a team. He pours everything he has into competing at a high level, while helping players find the best versions of themselves within the framework of a team. On top of all of that, Joe leads with an authentic care for the Celtics and everyone he works with – players, coaches, and staff.”
Ranking second in the NBA in offensive rating (120.0) and fourth in defensive rating (111.7), Boston was one of two teams this season to be in the top four in both offensive and defensive rating. The Celtics also led the league in several categories this season, including fewest turnovers per game (12.4), fewest opponent points in the paint per game (40.1), and fewest steals allowed per game (6.2). The Celtics averaged 16.9 second chance points per game this season, the team’s most in the play-by-play era, and averaged the team’s most offensive rebounds per game (12.5) since the 1999-2000 season. Boston was tied for the league lead in games allowing 100 points or less (22) this season and led the NBA in games with 20+ 3-pointers made (16).
Mazzulla was named Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for December, his fifth career monthly honor, after guiding Boston to a 9-3 record in December with a league-best 124.3 offensive rating. He earned his 200th career victory in just 275 games, making him the third-fastest coach in NBA history to do so behind Steve Kerr (238 games) and Phil Jackson (270 games).
In four seasons as Boston’s head coach, Mazzulla owns a 238-90 regular season record (.726 winning percentage) and has gone 36-21 (.632) in the playoffs.

Derrick White Earns All-D Honors

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NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Celtics guard Derrick White was named to the 2025-26 NBA All-Defensive first team. White, who led all guards in contested shots (552) and blocks per game (1.3) this season, earns his first career All-Defensive First Team honor and becomes the 11th Celtic in franchise history to be named to an All-Defensive starting five.

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An All-Defensive second team selection in 2022-23 and 2023-24, White tallied 37 games this season with at least one steal and one block, ranking first among all guards. The 2025-26 NBA Sportsmanship Award recipient ranked third in the NBA in defensive win shares (11.9) and was a combined +598 on the season, ranking fourth in the NBA. White became one of two Celtics guards in franchise history (Reggie Lewis) to tally at least 75 blocks and 75 steals in a single season.

White, a key member of the 2024 Celtics NBA championship team, averaged a career-high 16.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, a career-high 5.4 assists, a career-high 1.1 steals, and a career-high 1.3 blocks per game this season. In his fifth season with Boston, the 31-year-old anchored a Celtics defense that ranked second in the NBA in defensive field goal percentage (44.2%) and fourth in defensive rating (111.7). He finished the season by posting a 39.5% defensive field goal percentage in the 2026 playoffs, ranking fifth among players with at least 100 attempts against.

 

White is just one of 17 Celtics players to be named to an All-NBA Defensive team. A global media panel of 100 voters selected the Kia NBA All-Defensive teams. Voters selected five players to the first team and five players to the second team regardless of position. Players received two points for each first team vote and one point for each second team vote. White earned first team honors after receiving 58 first place votes and 30 second place votes.

Darkness on the Edge of Causeway

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By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – The house is dark. The ghostlight is on, and Bruce Springsteen is on.

The Celtics were up three-games-to-one against a Philadelphia 76ers team that hadn’t beaten Boston in a NBA Playoff series since Billy Cunningham coached a 1982 team, and they blew it. It was so long ago, longtime Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy had just started his first “big” beat covering the NBA. The hometown team – once invincible in Game 7s – has left the TD Garden dark. The Sixers moved on to meet the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference semifinals and were mowed down by a superior team. The Knicks will face Cleveland for the right to play in the NBA Finals.

The Celtics “Owe Us One.”

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But, it gets worse.

The TD Garden was witness to a suspect Boston Bruins team losing to the once-lowly Buffalo Sabres a night before the Celtics were sent to see St. Peter. The Sabres hadn’t won a Stanley Cup playoff series in 19 years, while the Sixers hadn’t beaten the Celtics in the playoffs since 1982, a mere 44 years. The Sabres lost to Montreal who are now playing Carolina for right to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.

It’s understandable how the Bs lost, but how could the Celtics collapse in such epic fashion?

Let us count the ways:

o Live by chucking 3s, die by chucking 3s. In their four losses to Philadelphia, the Boston Celtics shot 49-for-191, or 25.7%.

  • Game 5 (April 28): Shot 28.2% (11-of-39) from three in a 113-97 home loss.
  • Game 6 (April 30): Shot 29.3% (12-of-41) from three in a 106-93 loss in Philadelphia.
  • Game 7 (May 2): Shot 26.5% (13-of-49) from three in a 109-100 series-clinching loss at home.

o Nick Nurse, the head coach of the Sixers and a champ when he coached at every level, including an NBA Finals title with the Toronto Raptors, can flat-out coach. Yes, he was graced with a resurgence from one-time NBA Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid, but Nurse guided the Sixers masterfully. NBA Coach of the Year, Joe Mazulla of the Celtics, was out-coached.

o Face facts: A starting five of: Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, Ron Harper Jr., Luka Garza, and Baylor Scheierman could not cut it in a decisive NBA Playoff game.  That group will never be compared to Danny Ainge, Dennis Johnson, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish. The team of Celtics so many NBA pundits expected for 2025-26 finally showed up. The absence of true “bigs” caught up with the team of green. Remember Al Horford? He was pretty good.

Two Boston pro teams were whooped on their home turf. They’re gone by May 2 and only Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band can bring life to the backstreets of the West End (May 24th), because on Saturday night, it seemed you could hear the whole damn city crying. Springsteen might say, “Blame it on the lies that killed us, blame it on the truth that ran us down.”

The truth was the fact the Celtics could not endure a full season without their best player, Jayson Tatum.

While Tatum orchestrated a miraculous (and quick) return from the devastating right Achilles’ injury he suffered in the 2025 NBA Playoffs, and performed quite well from his March 6 return to active duty right on through to an incredible Game 3 shooting performance against the Sixers in Philadelphia, a sore left knee and discomfort that forced him to leave Game 6, also ruled him out just hours before Game 7.

Nine years into his NBA career, the 28-year-old Tatum is feeling the effects of 729 NBA regular season and playoff games.

Boston’s wonderkid GM, Brad Stevens, cannot be blamed for inactivity.

Stevens was faced with a choice of trading one of his “Big Two” of Tatum or Jaylen Brown, and possibly dismantling the 2024 NBA championship team somewhere short of a total rebuild. Instead, being faced with an aging Celtics team and a double secret probation by far exceeding the NBA’s agreed upon maximum team salary zones – the Cs – via Stevens’ surgical strike on salaries – dipped under both the First and Second Aprons of the NBA’s salary cap structure by reducing the team payroll for the 2025-26 season to a mere $187,885,254.

The Cleveland Cavaliers, the New York Knicks and Golden State Warriors are all over $200 million and face limitations in their wheeling and dealing. Stevens and the Celtics do not.

The cost (saving) came when the Celtics jettisoned veteran bigs Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis. Both players contributed mightily in the 2024 NBA Finals with Porzingis’ astonishing Game 1 performance which won the most important game of the series at Boston.  If you remember, with Porzingis coming off the bench for just the second time in his career and playing in his first game (June 6) since he had sustained a calf injury in late April, Porzingis scored 20 points, including 18 in the first half, and added six rebounds and three blocks as the Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks 107-89 to send a statement to the Texans.

Horford provided even more. The veteran center was an influential presence in the locker room, an intangible for NBA teams destined for good things to come, for chemistry, for facing and conquering adversity, and for winning championships. Horford was the whole package, plus, he hit three-pointer after three-pointer, drawing opposing centers away from the basket and allowing Tatum and Brown to operate inside.

Horford was traded to the Golden State Warriors in September 2025, signing a multi-year deal, and continuing into his 19th NBA season.

Boston’s other cost-saving move was to send multi-talented guard Jrue Holiday and his $32.4 million contract to the NBA outskirts of Portland, Oregon (not Maine). Holiday was another veteran, positive influence and key contributor to the 2024 championship, especially on the defensive end of the basketball court.

All of those moves put together allowed the Celtics to avoid the NBA’s punitive luxury taxes. The more stable payroll paved the way for new ownership as the franchise was sold by the longtime ownership group headed by Wyc Grousbeck for a then-record $6.1 billion. The new group, led by Bill Chisholm, paid an amazing amount of cash considering Grousbeck bought the team for $360 million in 2002.

A look over to the Fens, just past the Longwood Medical Center, and the prognosis isn’t much better. The Red Sox are floundering in the AL East basement. The offense is anemic and the middle relievers count runs against, ERA and Whip as though they were all MIT graduates. The brown paper bags are making a fashion statement and Jason Veritek’s wife is pouring on the sarcastic quips aimed at Sox GM, head of baseball Craig Breslow. Veritek “is being re-assigned” within the organization after Breslow leveled the coaching staff, including manager Alex Cora. There’s no AC and no DC in the Sox bats. No static at all.

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But, there’s one thing worse than a dark June at the TD Boston Garden, and that was a dark May. Only Bruce Springsteen’s rock show on May 24th will bring some “glory days” back to Boston.

The memories of 2018 and a club record of 108 wins is long gone. as those were, indeed, the glory days.

And, one thing’s sure of the glory days.

They’ll pass you by.

 

 

76ers, Embiid End Celtics’ Season

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Philadelphia’s oft-injured center Joel Embiid had 34 points, 12 rebounds and six assists and Sixers’ all-star Tyrese Maxey added 30 points and 11 rebounds to lead the 76ers to a 109-100 victory over the host Boston Celtics in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series Saturday night. The 76ers won the  final three games in the series. It was the first time in franchise history that Philadelphia has overcome a 3-1 series deficit and only the 14th time in league history for any team.

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“We handled playing (in a hostile environment) just enough, but I think it was really good for us to experience it,” 76ers coach Nick Nurse said.

Philadelphia, seeded seventh, visits the third-seeded New York Knicks on Monday in Game 1 of their second-round series.

“What changed in the series is Joel Embiid came back, and they’re a completely different team,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said.

Embiid took the court for the last three games after not playing since April 6, as he required an emergency appendectomy during a team trip through Texas.

Second-seeded Boston trailed 99-98 following two Neemias Queta free throws, but Maxey scored the next eight points to put Philadelphia up 107-98 with 15 seconds left.

Philadelphia received 23 points from rookie VJ Edgecombe. Paul George added 13. The 76ers’ bench totaled three points (all by Quentin Grimes).

Boston’s Jayson Tatum was ruled out of the  game because of stiffness in his left knee. He left Game 6 with 4:03 remaining in the third quarter with a left leg injury.

Tatum averaged 23.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per contest in six playoff games this season. The six-time All-Star forward averaged 21.8 points and 10.0 boards in 16 regular-season games after returning March 6 from a devastating ruptured right Achilles tendon last May in the playoffs.

Jaylen Brown led Boston with 33 points and added nine rebounds. Derrick White finished with 26 points and Queta had 17 points and a team-high 12 rebounds off the bench. Celtics starters Baylor Scheierman, Luka Garza and Ron Harper Jr. failed to score. Reserves Payton Pritchard added 13 points and Sam Hauser 11.

The Celtics shot 26.5% (13 of 49) from 3-point range and 39.8% (37 of 93) from the field.

“We’re always going to play to the strength of our team,” Mazzulla said.

The Sixers made 11 of 28 (39.3%) from long range and 47.6% (39 of 82) from the field.

“In the last two games and portions of this one, we guarded the ball very well,” Nurse said. “We weren’t giving them great looks. That probably for the whole series was the big key.”

Philadelphia scored the game’s first nine points and led 30-15 following an Embiid jumper with 1:55 left in the opening quarter. The 76ers were up 32-19 after 12 minutes.

Boston scored 18 of the first 22 points in the second quarter and had its first (and what turned out to be only) lead, 37-36, after a Pritchard 3-pointer with 6:52 left in the first half. Philadelphia rallied to take a 55-50 halftime advantage.

An 8-0 run gave Philadelphia a 63-52 lead, and the 76ers were up 84-66 after an Edgecombe 3-pointer with 2:24 remaining in the third. It was 88-75 after three quarters.

Boston began the fourth quarter with a 16-4 run to cut its deficit to one point, 92-91, with 7:59 to play. The 76ers led 95-94 with 5:52 left.

“(The Celtics) just played in transition for about 12 straight minutes, and then we finally got them stopped to get in their sets,” Nurse said. “Defensively, that was the difference for us in the last three minutes. We had them in halfcourt until maybe the final 90 seconds when they were just coming up and firing.”

Mazzulla said: “Loved the looks that we got, loved the process that we had, but hate the result.”

–Field Level Media

 

Two Words: “Game Seven”

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Boston Celtics will try to avoid a series collapse Saturday night when they face the visiting Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series. Second-seeded Boston held a 3-1 lead in the series, but lost Game 5 at home and then dropped Game 6, 106-93, in Philadelphia on Thursday night. If the seventh-seeded 76ers can find a way to win Game 7 on the road, Boston would become the 14th team in NBA history to lose a series after holding a 3-1 advantage.

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“I’ve been playing these guys for so long,” said Philadelphia center Joel Embiid. “I’m tired of losing to them. So we have a chance to accomplish something special. They’re a great team. You look at everything they have. That’s a super team. We just gotta go in with the mindset that we’ve had for the last two games. One play at a time. Tough environment, but we’ve been there. We won two games over there.”

Boston was 12 of 41 from 3-point territory in Thursday’s loss, after being held to 11-of-39 shooting from behind the 3-point arc in its 113-97 setback in Game 5.

“Very good game by us,” Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse said following Thursday’s victory. “I think we played really well. Probably most impressed with our defensive effort, and shot creation was good. I don’t think the shot-making was great, but the shot creation was very good.”

Boston received a scare Thursday when Jayson Tatum exited the court with 4:03 remaining in the third quarter and did not return. Tatum said he felt tightness in his left leg, but is slated to play Saturday.

“Y’all probably saw when I went to the back,” Tatum said. “So I was on the bike. My leg was just a little stiff when I came out in the third quarter. But just kind of assessing the moment, like the game was a little out of reach. We took the starters out.

“Our intentions aren’t good,” Tatum continued. “We want to go out there and play the right way and win. It’s just we just got to be a little bit more together, a little bit tougher, play with more pace, play faster. How they have played majority of the season. Then since I’ve been back (from an Achilles injury), just kind of getting back to who we are.”

Two of Boston’s three wins in the series came by more than 30 points. The Celtics won Game 1 123-91, then prevailed 128-96 in Game 4.

“We definitely made some adjustments,” Mazzulla said after Game 6. “Some of them worked, some of them didn’t. Like I said, I thought tonight the Sixers played well, and we didn’t.”

Tyrese Maxey led all scorers with 30 points in Game 6. Jaylen Brown led Boston with 18 points.

“Sometimes it’s not about the Xs and Os, it’s about the Jims and the Joes,” Maxey said. “Who you have on your team, our Jims and Joes got to be better than theirs. It’s going to be a dogfight. It’s going to be extremely difficult. Every single second will be a roller coaster ride. Us as a group, we have to stay connected. Stay with one goal in mind – that’s you’re trying to win the game.”

–Field Level Media

Sixers Force Game Seven

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PHILADELPHIA – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Philly’s All-Star Tyrese Maxey scored 30 points Thursday as the surging Philadelphia 76ers posted a 106-93 win over the visiting Boston Celtics, forcing a decisive Game 7 in their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series.

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The second-seeded Celtics led the series 3-1 following a 32-point win in Philadelphia on Sunday, but the seventh-seeded Sixers rebounded to post double-digit wins in Games 5 and 6.

The teams will reconvene Saturday for Game 7 in Boston, where the Sixers will aim to complete a 3-1 series comeback for the first time in franchise history.

Paul George added 23 points for Philadelphia, while Joel Embiid had 19 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in his third game since returning from an emergency appendectomy. VJ Edgecombe and Kelly Oubre Jr. chipped in with 14 points apiece for the Sixers.

“I just thought we played free,” George said. “It’s really no pressure. We come out — we lose, we go home.”

“It’s (still) win-or-go-home. I like our chances,” George said about Game 7. “I know it ain’t going to be easy, but we’ve been playing well lately.”

Jaylen Brown led Boston with 18 points but also committed five of his team’s 13 turnovers. Jayson Tatum contributed 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Celtics, who shot poorly from the field (41.9%), the 3-point arc (12 of 41, 29.3%) and the foul line (9 of 16, 56.2%).

Philadelphia shot just 8 of 24 (33.3%) from the field in the first quarter and trailed 23-20 after 12 minutes.

The second quarter was a different story for the Sixers, who outscored the Celtics 38-26 in the period. Maxey led the way with 13 points in the session.

Philadelphia’s lead was 38-36 midway through the second quarter before Edgecombe’s jumper ignited an 18-8 run that put the hosts ahead by a dozen late in the period. Boston briefly got its deficit down to seven before Maxey dropped in a floater just before halftime.

About three minutes into the third quarter, Brown knocked down a 3-pointer to bring Boston within 65-54. However, Philadelphia countered with a flashy sequence in which Embiid’s behind-the-back pass set up an Oubre dunk and then George’s behind-the-back pass unleashed an Edgecombe slam to bring the crowd to its feet.

The Sixers went on to lead by as many as 21 points late in the third quarter before the Celtics inched within 82-63 heading into the fourth.

Philadelphia was up 88-65 with 10:24 remaining, but Boston then scored 11 straight points, capped by Luka Garza’s dunk with 7:10 to play.

However, it didn’t take the Sixers long to regain control. Edgecombe swished a 3-pointer to make it 98-78 and the home team cruised from there.

“It’s part of the playoffs. We have an opportunity for Game 7 at home,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “We didn’t play well tonight. We’ve got to move on to the next game.”

–Field Level Media

Sixers stun Celtics; Force Game 6

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BOSTON – (Wire Service Report) – Joel Embiid tossed in 33 points and added eight assists as the visiting Philadelphia 76ers avoided elimination by beating the Boston Celtics 113-97 Tuesday in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series. Embiid, who missed the first three games of the series following an appendectomy, went to the locker room with an apparent knee injury with 4:35 to play in the third quarter, but returned to the game with 2:00 left in the third.

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Tyrese Maxey added 25 points and 10 rebounds for the seventh-seeded 76ers, who entered the fourth quarter down one but outscored the Celtics 28-11 over the final 12 minutes. Paul George finished the game with 16 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

Second-seeded Boston received 24 points and 16 rebounds from Jayson Tatum, and 22 points from Jaylen Brown. Neemias Queta had eight points and 14 rebounds. The Celtics shot 36 of 89 from the field.

Boston went in front for the first time on a Brown layup that made it 16-15 with 2:59 left in the first. The Celtics led 23-21 entering the second.

Boston extended its advantage to 42-31 on a Tatum 3-pointer, but the 76ers moved to within two points, 50-48, following a Maxey 3-pointer with 2:10 remaining in the half. Boston scored the next seven points and had a 57-50 halftime lead.

The Celtics stretched their lead to 13 points, 63-50, less than two minutes into the third, but a VJ Edgecombe 3-pointer pulled Philadelphia within one point, 66-65, with 6:37 to play in the quarter. Boston was up 86-85 at the end of three.

Philadelphia took an 88-86 lead on a George 3-pointer early in the fourth, and had its largest lead of the game after Edgecombe knocked down a 3-pointer that made it 109-94 with 2:25 to play.

Game 6 will be Thursday night in Philadelphia.

–Field Level Media

Celtics Can Close Out the Sixers

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BOSTON – (Wire Service Report) – The Boston Celtics can close out the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series with the visiting Philadelphia 76ers in Game 5 on Tuesday night. After splitting two games in Boston, the second-seeded Celtics took a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series by beating the seventh-seeded 76ers twice in Philadelphia.

“Played another about-as-bad-as-you-can-play game,” Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse said following Boston’s 128-96 victory in Game 4. “That’s two out of four in this series. Played well in the other two and we got to get back to playing well quickly. Got to go get one.”

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Philadelphia can point to defending the perimeter as one of the must-fix items on the 76ers’ list in order to stave off elimination. The Celtics made 24 3-pointers during Game 4, shooting 48.3% overall and 45.3% from 3-point range.

Payton Pritchard, Boston’s backup point guard, made 6 of 12 3-pointers and tossed in 32 points in the Game 4 victory. Pritchard was 2-of-13 from 3-point territory in the first two games of the series and then made 5 of 10 3-pointers in Boston’s Game 3 win.

“I don’t know if I saw anything different,” Pritchard said. “It’s just more playing with that aggression, playing with that spark. I felt it in Game 3. I was telling some of the coaches I thought it was a step in the right direction as far as my aggression and getting my rhythm back.”

Boston’s 24 3-point field goals set a franchise record for made 3-pointers in a playoff game. Jayson Tatum made five shots from beyond the 3-point arc.

“It was very bad,” Nurse said when asked about his team’s defensive effort in Game 4. “It just didn’t seem like any matchup could guard anybody one-on-one. We had them pushed out and bottled up and physical and really off kind of rhythm for a couple games, and there was none of that ”

Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid returned to the court after missing the first three games in the series following an emergency appendectomy on April 9. He finished with a team-high 26 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, but didn’t get a lot of offensive support.

Tyrese Maxey scored 22 points, but attempted only three shots in the first half. VJ Edgecombe was 2-of-9 from the field and had six points.

“That can’t happen,” Maxey said. “That’s on me. That absolutely can’t happen. That’s unacceptable by me. I was playing within the flow of the game and it kind of just happened that way.

” … We can’t win basketball games with that happening and I take full responsibility on that one.”

Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said the Celtics have to be prepared for Philadelphia’s best effort in Game 5.

“Regardless of who we’re playing against, we have to have an understanding that they are a really good team,” he said. “They can beat you on any given night. They’ve got great talent with the three stars that they have (Embiid, Maxey, and Paul George) and their role players when they are at their best … We’ve got to be disciplined on all the things that we can control – physical, mental, emotional, psychological, tactical, all of them.”

The winner of the Celtics/76ers series will meet either third-seeded New York or sixth-seeded Atlanta in the next round. That series is 2-2 headed back to New York for Game 5 Tuesday.

“We’ve got three chances to win one game,” Jaylen Brown said. “And the goal is just to get it done as soon as possible.”

–Field Level Media