The Celtics opened up the 2019 season with a tough loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, losing 107-93. The Celtics kept the game close in the first half as they were only down 1 when the second quarter ended. The Sixers height and length seemed to just dominate the Celtics smaller players.
It is a tough way to start the season after all the drama and disappointment from last year. This year’s team is not entering the season with the same type of talent they did last year after they lost Kyrie Irving and Al Horford to free agency. This team’s chance of being really good relies on their chemistry and depth.
The Celtics can’t blame anyone but themselves for this loss. As a team, the Celtics struggled to score the ball. They lacked consistency on the offensive end. The team had a tough time hitting threes, only hitting 7 of the 26 threes they took. The real problem was their free throw shooting, that was where they beat themselves. They shot less than 60% from the free throw line, not a great way to start the season. Hitting free throws is key to staying in games, missing them can get frustrating which can lead to more misses.
It is difficult to win a basketball when you shoot as poorly as the Celtics did on Wednesday. Its even more difficult when you get out rebounded by 21. Coach Brad Stevens will have some work to do when trying to figure out how the Celtics can match up against a team as big as the Sixers.
However, not everything was a negative. This is a team that hasn’t had much experience playing with each other. Free agent signing Kemba Walker seemed to have some first game nerves, shooting just 4-18 from the field. This team will take a little while to develop chemistry and learn each other’s tendencies. Gordon Hayward is now in his first fully healthy season after his scary injury two years ago. He looked like he got his aggressiveness back when driving to the basket. He could play a key role for the team if he can get back to his all-star form.
The Celtics play the defending NBA champions on Friday at 7 p.m where they will have their home opener. The fans are going to be loud and the Celtics need to feed off of that and get their first win of the season.
