If you were in the New England area and in half-decent physical shape, odds are someone contacted you about participating in a local basketball game on Thursday night.
The Sixers traveled to Boston to face the defending champions, who were short-handed on the second night of a back-to-back. With Jayson Tatum, Derrick White and Payton Pritchard available, the Celtics had more than enough to easily handle a Sixers team missing Tyrese Maxey (back) and Paul George (groin) on top of Joel Embiid and many other critical pieces.
Other players unavailable for Thursday's game: Eric Gordon, Jared McCain, Kyle Lowry and Jalen Hood-Schifino for the Sixers, with Jaylen Brown, Al Horford, Kristaps Porziņģis, Sam Hauser and Jrue Holiday out for Boston.
Sixers head coach Nick Nurse and Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla had very few chess pieces to move around, but Mazzulla had a few stellar options mixed in while Nurse was largely reduced to mixing and matching suspect options. The result, unsurprisingly, was a decisive Celtics victory.
The Sixers brought all of the necessary effort in this one, but just did not have the sort of manpower required to beat a rolling Tatum and the Celtics. Here is what stood out from the Sixers' 123-105 loss in Boston:
Justin Edwards returns. Will he continue to find more comfort on the ball?
Edwards returned to the lineup after missing one game with a left ankle sprain, starting in place of George. It was a positive sign for Edwards, who missed three consecutive games with a sprain in the same ankle last month.
Before hurting his ankle again with a minute and change left on Monday night, Edwards had been showing a marked increase in aggression as a scorer in recent contests:
A few plays I had saved from the TOR/GSW/POR games in which Justin Edwards has looked noticeably more assertive and confident as an on-ball scorer: https://t.co/BtjiH0CLs4 pic.twitter.com/Sdmm5qJ20j
— Adam Aaronson (@SixersAdam) March 7, 2025
Edwards picked up where he left off in the opening minutes on Thursday, coming off a screen to score the Sixers' first points on before knocking down a quick-trigger triple on the very next possession:
nothing but net. 🤌 pic.twitter.com/qm5ULiqc2Z
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) March 7, 2025
In a hellish season, the 21-year-old undrafted rookie Edwards has been one of the lone genuine bright spots for the Sixers. Within six weeks of earning regular rotation minutes, the hometown product also earned a conversion to a standard NBA deal. Edwards' new contract contains a team option for next season; the Sixers will likely decline it so they can ink Edwards to a longer-term deal with solidifies him as an important component of their group of young players.
Edwards is a very willing spot-up three-point shooter, has recently displayed the aforementioned on-ball aggression and is a reliable defender across multiple positions with good size and athleticism on the wing. But his feel for the game stands out above the rest; Edwards never appears overmatched or overwhelmed physically or mentally when he is on the floor.
Nurse says no talk yet of shutting down George
George missed Monday's game with groin soreness, returned on Tuesday after initially being listed as questionable despite admitting after the game that he was not at 100 percent, but was ruled out midway through the fourth quarter of that contest. George was once again listed as questionable heading into Thursday's game, but news broke in the middle of the afternoon that he would not play.
George's first season in Philadelphia has been extremely disappointing in nearly every respect, and after signing a four-year contract worth $211 million, the nine-time All-Star has very rarely looked the part of a max player since joining the Sixers. Diminished off-the-dribble burst, two separate bone bruises in the same knee and a finger injury which has immobilized his left pinky for over a month have all contributed to a rough year for George, who will turn 35 years old in May.
With the eyes of many focused on the Sixers' top-six protected first-round pick, the overwhelming consensus is that the Sixers should just pull the plug on George's year, shut him down for the remainder of the season and give younger players more opportunities while preventing George from suffering another injury.
However, according to reporters in Boston, Nurse indicated before Thursday's game that such a plan has yet to be considered.
"I haven't discussed that with anybody," Nurse said when asked before the game about whether or not George would be shut down for the remainder of the season, according to Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire, reporting from Boston.
Odds and ends
Some more notes from Thursday night's action:
• Nurse returned to Jared Butler as the backup point guard in this one, continuing his constant toggling back and forth between Butler and two-way floor general Jeff Dowtin Jr., but after just three minutes and change in which Butler missed a shot, committed a foul and had a turnover, Butler was replaced by Dowtin, who also struggled but remained in that role in the second half.
• Starting point guard Quentin Grimes, who looked a bit overwhelmed as a primary ball-handler early on in a way that he did not in Minnesota on Tuesday, when he scored 30 points on 18 shots. As the Sixers continue to give Grimes significant ball-handling duties, the 24-year-old will experience natural growing pains that should help him in the long run.
• Lonnie Walker IV is beginning to show the Sixers some things. He had his best all-around showing since joining with the team on Monday, scoring 13 points and submitting a spirited defensive effort to end a rough four-game slump which kicked off his tenure with his hometown team. Walker had a strong start on Tuesday night as well, but eventually tailed off. Playing in Boston against the team which waived him after training camp just a handful of months ago, Walker knocked down three triples in the first half, scoring 11 points prior to intermission, tying him for the team lead.
nice save. nice bucket.@qdotgrimes x @lonniewalker_4 pic.twitter.com/kxQ6Uyr95o
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) March 7, 2025
Walker has been extremely aggressive offensively of late, and while he is not a player who should have an enormous workload in terms of shots and ball-handling duties under normal circumstances, part of his utility is to absorb some of that burden when high-usage players are unavailable.
• With all of the Sixers' absences listed at the top, Ricky Council IV still could not find his way into the regular rotation in this one. It is quite a damning reflection of how low Council's stock is as his second NBA season winds down. Even when the Sixers began to empty their bench in the fourth quarter, two-way player Alex Reese checked into the game before Council. There is no doubt Council has the athletic juice to make an impact at the NBA level, but he has yet to show the requisite combination of skill and focus to do it on a nightly basis yet.
• Kelly Oubre Jr. was the Sixers' most steady and aggressive offensive force in this one. He was red-hot in the third quarter, scoring 16 points to keep the Sixers hanging around for longer than anyone would have guessed they would. It has been noted here before, but on a team which has had seriously concerning effort on far too many occasions this season, Oubre's consistent, relentless energy has been commendable.
Up next: The Sixers' two-game road trip is complete, and after a pair of days off, they will face the lowly Utah Jazz on Sunday evening. Former Sixers first-round pick Jaden Springer will return as part of Utah's new roster, and KJ Martin will make his return to Philadelphia as well.
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