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Boston Celtics @ Philadelphia 76ers -6.5 T: 204.5

The Celtics are looking to complete the sweep on Monday night after their overtime win on Saturday in what will likely forever be known as the “Confetti Game” in Philadelphia. Boston was lead by rookie Jayson Tatum who set a Celtics rookie record with his fifth straight 20-point performance of the playoffs.  Tatum is averaging 24.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists while shooting 55.3-percent from the field.  After struggling to produce on the road during the first round Terry Rozier finished with 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. Rozier has committed just two turnovers this entire series. Al Horford was a non-factor for most of Game 3 but came up big in the second half and in overtime.  He finished with 13 points, six rebounds, two assists, two steals and three blocks.  Jaylen Brown scored 16 on 6-of-12 shooting with nine rebounds, one steal and two blocks off the bench.  The 76ers were lead by Joel Embiid who scored 22 points and pulled down 19 rebounds.  Embiid is averaging 24.3 points and 15.3 rebounds in this series as the Celtics are seemingly OK with him getting his stats as long as they can limit the rest of the team from producing.  Even with that said, Embiid is still shooting just 43.5-percetn from the floor.  Ben Simmons bounced back from his one-point Game 2 performance to score 16 points with eight rebounds and eight assists on 8-of-14 shooting.  JJ Redick finished third in scoring with 18 points while making just 3-of-8 shots from three-point range.  

Pre-Game Props

Q1. The last made shot of the 1st Quarter is a free throw.

I answered NO for this question for the simple reason that the Celtics average just 22 free throw attempts per game this postseason and the 76ers average 28 free throw attempts per game.  In Game 3 there was just two attempted free throws during the entire first quarter and they did not come until there was four minutes left.  Both teams have a lot of perimeter shoos with the exception of Ben Simmons who is really the only player without three-point range.

Q2. Which team wins the opening tipoff?

I went with the 76ers on this one as Joel Embiid has yet to lose a tip against Aron Baynes in this series and I don’t expect that trend to end tonight. Embiid is far more athletic and has much more elevation than Baynes.  If you wanted to use your “One-Shot” on any of the pre-game props then this would be the one to pick.

Q3. Both teams make their first FG attempt of the game.

I went with NO for my answer here because the Celtics are one of the leagues best defensive teams in the NBA and both teams are mostly perimeter shooters. Also, through the first three games of this series the two teams have not traded off baskets to begin the game. The 76ers missed their first shot attempts in Games 1 and 2 while the Celtics missed their first shot attempt in Game 3 after the Sixers made their opening attempt.

Q4. Terry Rozier outscores Joel Embiid in the 1st Quarter.

I went with NO for this one as Rozier has struggled on the road during the playoffs and though he had a strong Game 3 he got off to a slow start.  Meanwhile Embiid has been a monster this series and with the 76ers down 3-0 I have to imagine they feed the ball to Embiid early and often.  Embiid also made a stink about not getting foul calls which could possibly lead to him getting a few more whistles in Game 3 and thus more free throw attempts.

Q5. Which team scores the most points in the 1st Quarter with the 76ers getting a two-point advantage.

I took Boston for this prop.  I am expecting the Sixers to come out strong in Game 4 to try and avoid the sweep but ultimately, I think Boston takes it to Philadelphia and jumps out to an early lead and covers the two-point spread here with ease.

Q6. Either team makes a three-pointer by the 10:00 mark of the 1st quarter.

I am going with YES for my answer here.  Both teams are happy to shoot from three-point range and all players with the exception of Ben Simmons have the range to hit from outside.  I expect JJ Redick to knock down the first three-point shot of the game here and possibly to open the scoring for the night.

Players to Watch

Boston Celtics

Jayson Tatum: Tatum has been quite impressive in this series, averaging 24.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists while shooting 55.3-percent from the field.  He has had tough defense played on him at times with Robert Covington and Ben Simmons but ultimately the 76ers have had no answer for the C’s rookie and I find it hard to believe they are able to stop him tonight.

Terry Rozier: Dubbed “Scary Terry” after his breakout playoff performance against the Bucks, Rozier has had a big series against the 76ers averaging 22.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.7 steals and 4.3 three-pointers per game while shooting 50-percetn from the floor and three-point range.  Rozier is too quick for the Sixers defenders and maybe only T.J. McConnel can guard him but that would mean Ben Simmons or J.J. Redick is off the floor in his place which is a trade off the Sixers seem unwilling to commit to.

Al Horford: Horford is the leader of the Celtics and while he got off to a slow start in Game 3, he came up big when it mattered most.  Horford has been very solid on the defensive end during this series and though Joel Embiid has put up gawdy stats during this series the Celtics and Horford specifically have held him to just 43-percent shooting.

Jaylen Brown: Brown has been coming off the bench while he nurses an injured hamstring but when he has been on the floor the Sixers have struggled to contain him.  This series Brown is averaging 14.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.0 steals, 1.0 blocks and 2.5 three-pointers while shooting 45.8-percent from the floor.  Brown will come off the bench again in Game 4 and has a reported limit of 25 minutes tonight though he exceeded that limit in Game 3 due to overtime.

Philadelphia 76ers

Joel Embiid: Embiid is averaging 24.3 points, 15.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists this series.  The Celtics are holding him to 43.5-percent shooting but ultimately Embiid is getting what he wants on both ends of the floor.  I expect Philly to feed the ball to Embiid and “Trust the Process” to lead them to victory and avoid the sweep.

Ben Simmons:  Simmons was criticized after his one-point performance in Game 2 and then for making a costly and game altering mental error in Game 3.  It will be interesting to see how he rebounds in this game.  He is a walking triple-double threat, but the Celtics have seemingly figured out how to defend Simmons and limit him from taking over the floor when he is on the court.

JJ Redick:  The Celtics are a solid when it comes to defending the perimeter, but Redick has still managed to get his shots off as he is averaging 20.3 points and 3.3 three-pointers on 48.9-percent shooting.  They will need him to continue to hit shots from beyond-the-arc if they hope to avoid a sweep in this series.