BSJ Game Report: Sixers 116, Celtics 115 (OT) - Smart's buzzer beater a fraction too late

PHILADELPHIA — Everything you need to know about the Celtics' Game 4 loss to the Sixers with BSJ insight and analysis.

IN A NUTSHELL

Jaylen Brown came out blistering hot, out-scoring the Sixers by himself early. Philly got it going, though, behind Joel Embiid and a huge first half by James Harden to go up 16. A late-half Celtics run cut it to just nine at the half. The Celtics and Sixers went back and forth with Tatum waking up some in the third and the lead staying at 9. The Celtics looked like they were blowing their chance at coming back but then they made a late run to take a lead, but a Marcus Smart 3-point attempt missed at the buzzer to send it to OT. Boston took a lead again, but Harden hit a 3 and Smart got another shot that went in, but was slightly late. 

Box Score

HEADLINES

Wasted opportunity: They had a five-point lead with 2:00 to go in the fourth. They gave up an offensive rebound and a 3-point play to PJ Tucker. Al Horford blocked an Embiid shot and Tyrese Maxey swooped in for the loose ball to set up Harden’s game-tying shot.  They forced an exhausted Embiid into a fadeaway 3 and the ball got batted out to Tobias Harris … which led directly to a missed Harden 3 where the Celtics couldn't secure the rebound and, ultimately, an Embiid bucket. They had chances to close this thing out and they didn’t. 

Bad decision: I’m not even talking about the non-timeout (that’s coming up later). Brown’s decision to leave Harden and double Embiid late in the OT led to Harden’s winning 3-pointer. 

“Just a bad read. It’s a gamble at the wrong time,” Brown said of the play. “Big shot by James Harden, but that's my fault. I take full accountability. Just a bad read.”

Leaving a 3-point shooter like Harden down 2 late in OT is just a bad decision. Even if Embiid scored, Boston would have had the ball and a chance to score. 

Game was lost early: When it comes down to the last second, there's a lot you can look at early in the game. They fell down 16 at one point, and had one especially embarrassing defensive lapse where Harden hit Embiid with a touchdown pass over Horford and Brown. If the Celtics had picked up their intensity earlier in the game, they would have been in a position to run away with this game.

TURNING POINT

That two offensive rebound stretch I mentioned earlier put the Sixers in a position to win this game. Smart had just completed a 3-point play to take the 3-point lead. Harden had turned the ball over, Embiid was oh-for-the fourth quarter, and Harden missed a 3-pointer. 

via GIPHY

If Tatum had just gone up and grabbed it with two hands, or If Brown had boxed out Tucker, that play goes the other way with Boston up 3 and the ball with some good momentum. Instead, the Sixers get a bucket and some confidence. 

SECOND GUESS

Nope, still not talking about the timeout thing. What I’m wondering here is why the Celtics never just Tatum and Brown in a pick-and-roll together unless they're just looking for a switch. If Tatum got a screen from Brown, he wouldn’t have been double-teamed. I don't care that Tucker was on Brown. If they switched then give it to Brown to go 1-on-1 at the end. They're wasting Brown’s talent by having him act as a floor spacer in final plays. 

FOUR-AND-A-HALF UP

Jaylen Brown: 23 points on 10-16 shooting and 3-8 from deep. He hit a big 3-pointer to cut the lead to 2 in as part of the comeback. He only took 3 shots in the fourth quarter, though, and none in the overtime. 

“I guess I gotta demand the ball a little bit more,” Brown said. “I thought good things happened when I had it in my hands, but I thought our offense was OK. I thought we chipped away, we made big-time shots, we got great looks all game long and we just came up short in the end.”

As I said, the decision to double off Harden was a bad one, but Brown was the reason Boston was as close as they were early on. 

Al Horford: His fourth-quarter defense on Embiid was amazing. Embiid was gassed, for sure, but Horford completely shut him down in the fourth. It was a masterclass, and it was a shame that it was wasted in the loss. He didn't shoot as well as in Game 3, and if a couple of shots fell, especially a wide-open corner 3 with 1:24 left in OT and Boston up 1, this would have been a different game. 

Marcus Smart: 21 points and 4-10 from 3, but if it was 5-10 this game would have been over at the regulation buzzer. He was a big part of giving Boston the OT lead. 

Jayson Tatum’s second half: 22 of his 24 points came after halftime. He seemed a bit passive to start the game and couldn't hit a thing in the first half. Then right out of halftime, he started attacking and drawing fouls. That Tatum that came out of the halftime locker room was a dominant force. He had 18 rebounds overall in the game, 1 off a career high. 

Malcolm Brogdon: 19 points on 6-13 shooting to go along with 8 rebounds. 

TWO DOWN

Robert Williams and Grant Williams: Both were mostly non-factors. Robert Williams had one spectacular blocked shot, but that's it. Frankly, I think he was more ignored than anything. Boston used to look for him following down the middle and they’ve stopped doing that. 

TOP PLAYS

ONE TAKE KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- I’m okay with not calling the late timeout

Alright, now we can talk about this. 

I understand the rationale behind calling the timeout. Boston could have advanced the ball, set a play, made sure Jaylen Brown was a second option … all of that makes sense. I’m not saying that's wrong. 

However, I understand why the timeout wasn’t called. They had Harden and Maxey on the floor. Embiid was gassed, so why give him a couple more minutes to rest? The Sixers had weak defenders on the floor, so I get why letting it ride was a choice to be made. Any play Boston drew up would probably look for Tatum on Tobias Harris and that's the matchup they got. 

The issue with the last play is that it took way too long to develop. Tatum detached from his defender at the :07 mark. That left him very little time to do anything if his first move was shut down. At that point, he should have just taken the shot. 

“I waited a second too late when they came and doubled,” Tatum said. “When Embiid came over, I tried to kick it out but I probably should have went and probably dribbled it too early."

He also missed Derrick White at the top of the key, who would have had a wide-open look with a lot of time left on the clock. There were options there that Tatum could have gone to that wouldn’t have been a prayer pass to Smart. 

Part of the outcry is that everyone expects the timeout to be called there. We are all conditioned to expect that timeout and when it’s not called, it had better work out. It didn't, so everyone is upset. 

It’s not at the top of my list of things that could have gone better. I think the double off of Harden is a much bigger mistake. I think missed opportunities in the fourth quarter were bigger issues. This one is where everyone’s anger is focused because it’s the most recent thing to go wrong, but I’m fine with not calling the timeout. 

Next up: Game 5 is Tuesday night in Boston