The Sixers Might Not Be That Far Away in the East After All

After the Sixers stole home-court advantage away from the Boston Celtics with their shocking 111-97 win in Game 2, the Celtics ripped it right back from them on Friday with a 108-100 win in Game 3.

The Celtics were ahead for most of the game, but the Sixers briefly snagged a lead in the fourth quarter. The Celtics immediately proceeded to go on an 8-0 run to regain a lead that they would never relinquish again.

The Sixers didn't roll over and play dead, though. They cut Boston's lead down to a single possession multiple times in the final few minutes of the game. They just couldn't string together enough stops or enough baskets to seize control.

The Sixers are still heavy favorites to lose this series, just as they were coming into it. Their obvious pain points are haunting them, just as expected. But aside from Game 1, this series hasn't been a blowout by any stretch.

If that continues throughout the rest of the series, it could go a long way toward determining how the Sixers approach the offseason.

The Sixers weren't the only cost-cutters

Two years ago, the Celtics won the title with a top six of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, Al Horford, Kristaps Porziņģis and Jrue Holiday. Two years later, Horford and Porziņģis are in Golden State, while Holiday is in Portland.

The Celtics have been badly missing all three against the Sixers.

As the great philosopher Shaquille O'Neal would say, Celtics backup center Nikola Vučević is BBQ chicken. The Sixers hunted him late in the game until the Celtics had no choice but to pull him off the floor. If Joel Embiid returns at some point in this series, the Sixers should have a clear frontcourt advantage that they never did during the Porziņģis and Horford era.

The Celtics won 56 games this season despite being without Tatum for most of the year, but the playoffs are putting a microscope on the difference between their championship roster and their current crew. They can conceal that to some extent by bombing away from deep—the Celtics went 20-of-47 from deep in Game 3, while the Sixers were 12-of-35—but future opponents will be bigger three-point threats than the Sixers.

Beating the Celtics on the road in the playoffs and battling them nearly even at home without Embiid could convince the Sixers that the gap between them isn't as large as assumed. Tyrese Maxey told reporters as much after Game 3.

Tyrese Maxey was asked if the Sixers always thought this series with the Celtics would be competitive despite what national media thought it would be: pic.twitter.com/MjaxoVrLXY
— Sixers On SI (@SixersOnSI) April 25, 2026

These are no longer the 2023-24 Celtics. Tatum and Brown are still a problem, but they aren't nearly as star-studded as they recently were.

In that respect, maybe the Sixers got off easy by only tax-dumping Jared McCain? The Celtics tax-dumped both Holiday and Porziņģis!

The rest of the East isn't looking so great, either

All four of the East's playoff series are 2-1 going into Game 4. The New York Knicks are the only higher-seeded team down 2-1.

The Knicks beat the Atlanta Hawks by 11 in Game 1, but they've lost back-to-back games by one point apiece. They blew a massive lead in Game 2 and then nearly overcame a massive deficit in Game 3, only to give up a game-winning CJ McCollum jumper.

If the Knicks lose in the first round, seismic changes—perhaps of the Greek variety—would likely follow this offseason. Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns in particular could be in danger of being moved. But the Knicks don't have many tradable draft picks thanks to the acquisition of Bridges, and they don't have a blue-chip prospect to offer, either.

Giannis or another star could force the issue by threatening to only re-sign with the Knicks when they reach free agency, but the Toronto Raptors took that gamble with Kawhi Leonard in 2018 and won a championship as a result. Other teams might be able to outbid the Knicks' all-in offer without giving up the farm.

The Detroit Pistons and Cleveland Cavaliers figure to close out their series and meet up in the second round. If the Cavs lose that series, questions about Donovan Mitchell's future could begin bubbling up again. They'll have to consider how committed they are to their core of Mitchell, James Harden, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen before re-signing Harden this offseason (assuming he declines his $42.3 million player option).

The Pistons are on a freeroll for now, but Jalen Duren is about to get a lot more expensive after this summer, and Tobias Harris is set to become an unrestricted free agent. Will they be able to find a way to manufacture more offense with an offseason pickup?

The Atlanta Hawks are on the rise, and the Orlando Magic could be as well, albeit perhaps with an offseason coaching change. The Toronto Raptors have enough middle-sized contracts to splash around in the trade market, too. Could they be a sneaky Giannis landing spot?

The Indiana Pacers will be back in the mix next season upon Tyrese Haliburton's return from a torn Achilles, particularly if they add a top-four pick to their core of Haliburton and Pascal Siakam. They have a 52.1% chance of walking away with one on lottery night and a 47.9% chance of sending either the No. 5 or No. 6 pick to the Los Angeles Clippers.

The East landscape is bound look far different six months from now than it does currently. But for now, the gap between the Sixers and the top title contenders in the East doesn't appear to be as wide as their respective playoff seeding would suggest.

If Embiid returns at some point in this series, the Sixers will get an even better opportunity to evaluate that hypothesis.

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Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Spotrac and salary-cap information via RealGM.

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