The Sixers’ loss to the Celtics back on Feb. 25 was heartbreaking on a number of levels.
The Sixers’ starters crushed Boston’s while the reserves hemorrhaged points against a super deep Celtics’ bench. Despite that, the Sixers hung with the defending Eastern Conference champs, losing on a Jayson Tatum dagger three with 2.2 seconds left.
As with all Sixers’ losses, the game quickly became a referendum on the entire team and season. Disclaimer: the Celtics loss counts just as much in the standings as the Heat loss a couple nights later.
While there was hand wringing over everything from the head coach to the bench to James Harden’s tough shooting night, it felt like Tyrese Maxey became front and center.