Hoops Tonight - CELTICS-76ERS GAME 7 REACTION: Maxey & Embiid beat Jaylen Brown, clinch series w/ Jayson Tatum hurt

Welcome to Hoops Tonight at The Volume. We just watched a wild Game seven, with a head‑scratching Celtics lineup, Joel Embiid owning the floor, Boston missing clean late looks, and Tyrese Maxey sealing it at the rim as Philly moves on to face New York.

What exactly flipped the series?

Embiid changed everything. Philly ditched the up‑to‑level scheme for a deep drop, stayed home on shooters, parked Joel at the rim, and turned Boston into a pull‑up team while taking away their drive‑and‑kick rhythm.

On the other end, Embiid erased Boston’s center rotation and forced doubles and zone by the finish; the Celtics could not move him off the paint, even when they tried to go small.

This was peak two‑way Embiid. He shut the door at the rim, hit a monster above‑the‑break three when it tightened, and carried a swagger that set the tone; when he is healthy, he is one of the best players left.

Maxey closed like a grown‑up. When jumpers got tense, he beat containment and finished layups while Boston bricked wide‑open threes that could have flipped it.

Paul George’s defense on Brown and Tatum mattered, and VJ Edgecomb, cold earlier in the series, drilled timely catch‑and‑shoots in Game two and Game seven that swung real equity.

Quick look ahead: the Knicks can space Joel out and run, testing his foot speed; the Sixers are used to rotating and will double and scramble plenty. My lean is New York as a slight favorite, but Embiid is the best player in that matchup and Maxey and PG give Philly a shot.

Where did Boston lose this, and how do you see that starting lineup choice?

I cannot justify starting Ron Harper Jr. and Luca Garza; more capable options sat while a never‑used group opened flat, botched spacing, and handed Philly early comfort.

I think Mazzulla is a top coach, but he overthought it; rolling out a brand‑new five in a win‑or‑go‑home game ceded momentum and made every late miss feel heavier than it needed to.

Shot diet was mostly fine; they generated lots of catch‑and‑shoots, but nerves and a funky whistle tugged Brown toward hunting contact instead of rhythm, and those clean looks at the end did not fall.

The numbers back it: thirty‑four catch‑and‑shoot attempts, their high since Game two. Process improved, outcome stung.

Roster lens: the frontcourt cracked without Tatum and Keta; they need a sturdier anchor or a big, strong forward to unlock small‑ball options, and I expect Brad Stevens to chase that hard.

Agreed; Keta is fine in some matchups, but Embiid exposed the gap, and a target like Nic Claxton feels redundant, not transformative.

They also lack a true downhill guard; add a speed creator plus a bruising forward and the build balances out.

On Mazzulla big picture, I am not in the fire‑the‑coach camp; he built a smart, adaptable offense and this was a bad bet, not a career verdict.

Same here; he has been outstanding all year, even if tonight’s choice was baffling.

Derek White should not be the scapegoat; he carried long stretches, while Brown needs a more reliable pull‑up three to hold up against drop.

Boston is very good, not elite, as a three‑point team; without Tatum’s rim pressure and kickouts their ceiling dips, and Brown’s drive‑and‑spray reads should be the next leap.

Zooming out, this season still beat expectations with four new rotation finds and real growth; the loss hurts, but the path forward is clear.

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