Sixers Likely to Have All Hands on Deck With Season on the Line

After a disastrous Game 4 in Joel Embiid's return from an appendectomy, the Sixers will head to Boston for Game 5 against the Celtics. Their season is on the brink on Tuesday.

If they are going to have any chance of forcing a Game 6, they will first need all hands on deck. Fortunately for Philadelphia, that will likely be the case.

Joel Embiid is listed as 'probable' for Game 5 with post appendectomy surgery recovery. Tyrese Maxey is listed as 'available' due to a tendon strain in his right pinky finger.

Boston did not report any injuries.

It would not be unlike the Sixers to zap the locals of all hope with a demoralizing loss that puts them in dire straits, only to revive their season with an unexpected victory.

The second thing they will need to do to accomplish that is deploy lineups that can guard a five-out offense. No offense to Andre Drummond, but you can pinpoint the exact time that momentum flipped in Game 4—when the veteran big man checked into the game.

It's not his fault. He is who he is. As Bryan mentioned in his piece earlier this morning, it's on Nick Nurse to accept that he can't control the personnel at his disposal. But he can control the tactics they employ against the Celtics.

But it can't just be about Drummond.

Nurse has conditioned this team to prioritize ball pressure and live with open 3s all season.

Boston made 20 3s in Game 3 and 24 in Game 4. The Sixers will shake their hands and congratulate them for some of the ones they hit to close out a thrilling Game 3. The Sixers will be planning vacations for as early as Thursday if they let the Celtics get the 3s they got in Game 4:

These are just the open 3s Boston got in Game 4. Between scheme and bad decisions, just one defensive mistake after another. pic.twitter.com/cAd67TvpKz
— Austin Krell (@NBAKrell) April 27, 2026

When you are constantly in rotation because someone is cheating for steals (looking at you, Tyrese Maxey and Kelly Oubre) or selling out to stop the ball in the paint, long close-outs to contest 3s take defenders out of position to box-out, leading to offensive rebounds.

It all leads back to the defensive principles that Nurse has imparted upon this team. It's part of why they've been terrible rebounders all season, although they have not been a good rebounding bunch since the days of Ben Simmons. It's part of why they suffered a handful of absolutely hideous losses over the course of the regular season. It's why they've lost two games in this series by at least 30 points each.

It's the same symptom every time.

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