PHILADELPHIA — Joe Mazzulla told Robert Williams III on Wednesday night he would start for the first time since March 3 next to Al Horford. He delivered the news the matchup needed — and that his players wanted to hear.
“I’ll tell you what,” Horford said. “I’m glad that Joe made that adjustment and we did it, because what a difference. It didn’t surprise me, I was happy that it happened, but we just know the impact that Rob has on the court. When Rob’s not in there, I feel like a lot falls on my shoulders, and when he’s out there, I know that he’s got my back and I can be a little more aggressive.”
Mazzulla previously shied away from last year’s starting unit due to injuries, uneven results and a desire to play a five-out offense, with execution on that end becoming the team’s identity. Yet when scoring struggles nearly led to Boston’s elimination in Game 6, defense saved it.
An overdue adjustment worked. James Harden threw away his first pass to P.J. Tucker, uncovered by Williams III. The 76ers shot 1-for-9 early, turned it over again when the shot clock expired, before Tyrese Maxey shot Philadelphia back within one possession.
Mazzulla called timeout and Smart walked into the huddle to light up his teammates. In a chaotic, tense and high-stakes environment that held everyone in the building on the edge of their seat, the Celtics took communication into their own hands.
They needed to clean up the offense, defend in a variety of lineups and coverages, hold off a furious Philadelphia comeback while uplifting Jayson Tatum from a nearly unprecedentedly poor start by a star.
“(My teammates) were extremely vocal throughout the game,” Tatum said. “Encouraging … that s*** was frustrating. You want to win so bad. You want to play so well and shot’s not falling. Things not necessarily going your way and you want it so bad. Trying to stay present. Trying to stay in the moment. Try and do other things. Every timeout, every huddle, my teammates are telling me, ‘the next one’s going in. Keep rebounding. Keep getting assists. Keep getting blocks … just believing the next one’s going in.’”
Tatum did all that on the way to a 95-86 win that saved the season and bided this core’s time together. Mazzulla — under fire as the series tilted against the Celtics — ceded some leadership to the players in a scene as disconnected, yet as passionate as…
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