NBA playoffs: players, schedule, favorites Boston-Philadelphia in the East

The anticipated final in the East, probably. Boston-Philadelphia is a second-round playoff challenge of tradition, charm and quality. And after the surprising elimination of the Milwaukee Bucks, winning this series already means anticipating the Finals, albeit with the utmost respect for the Knicks and Heat, the “tough” protagonists of the other Conference semifinal. Race-1 is scheduled in Boston, from 1.30 in the Italian night between Monday and Tuesday.

Boston (2)-Philadelphia (3)

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In the first round playoffs Celtics 4-2 over Atlanta, 76ers 4-0 over Brooklyn.

The quintets

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Boston: Smart, White, Brown, Tatum, Horford. Philadelphia: Harden, Maxey, Harris, Tucker, Embiid.

The challenge

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The shadow of Joel Embiid’s injured right knee stretches – from an unpredictable variable – over the series. The big man from Cameroon, probable Mvp of the season, is only waiting for the official announcement, it is more no than yes for game-1, according to the words of Coach Rivers, after the injury suffered in the third first round match against the Nets. Truth or pretactic? We’ll only find out a few hours before the kick-off at the start of the series, in Beantown. And if and (from) when will he play in what conditions will he be? Everything changes, of course, based on the answer. Philly still has to imagine a plan B that in attack can only go through Harden, who however finished with just 24% of completion against the Nets at the rim. He no longer has continuity as a first offensive end, but he can place a couple of big starts that mark the series giving Embiid time to recover without it already being a red alert. The 76ers’ defense was eighth in the league in ratings (112.7), a team certainty, but holding off the Jay’s won’t be a walk in the park. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown closed the six episodes of the series with Atlanta scoring 27.2 and 26.7 points respectively, Tatum less efficient than in the regular season, Brown instead shooting even with 54% from the field and in particular 51.5% from 3 points, despite a damned effort at free throws. Tucker is a defensive specialist who will try to contain at least one, but Harris will be called to overtime, to a job outside his comfort zone.

The prediction

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Boston was awarded 3 of 4 regular season challenges. Keeping Maxey, who came off the bench on a couple of occasions then, to just 10 points per game, and shooting 35%. His performance will probably be better, he averaged 21.8ppg against Brooklyn, with an efficiency of 47%, but how much better? Smart, White and Brown are quality defenders who will try to test the inexperience of the 22-year-old Texan full back of the 76ers, the obvious X factor of the series. With Embiid at his best and safe available from game-1 Philly would have deserved confidence, the Celtics have no antidotes for him because Horford no longer has the athleticism to contain him and Robert Williams lacks the physical and mental endurance. But like this, with a huge question mark on the physical conditions of the African center, it becomes logical to bet on the Celtics, even if they didn’t appear unbeatable against Atlanta. 4-2 for those in green, therefore.