What to watch for as the Boston Celtics visit rival Philadelphia 76ers

It’s a big game for seeding, it’s a big game in the rivalry, and it’s a big game for the Boston Celtics to get back on track. So it’s probably worth a watch, right?

The Boston Celtics gave us all a collective headache Saturday night when they blew another big lead to an LA team at home. Those were both games they should have won, and now they’re behind the 8-ball in the playoff picture.

The Celtics visit the now loaded Sixers in a bout for playoff seeding. The Celtics will be without their best player, so it’s unlikely they pull out a win. But hey, we’ve seen them do crazier things, so let’s break down some of the key components for Tuesday night.

Tale of the tape

Celtics: 35-21 (5th in East), 13-13 on the road, 1-11 on the road since last year without Kyrie Irving

Sixers: 36-20 (4th in East), 23-6 at home, 2-0 since acquiring Tobias Harris

Who steps up?

Probably one of the two pictured above, right? Without Irving in this one, it’s a near lock Terry Rozier starts in his place, while Jayson Tatum probably takes on a heavier offensive load than normal. Both of these players cooked the Sixers in the playoffs last season, but that was a different Philly team.

All season one of the issues with this team has been the young players not adapting to minimized roles as well as we’d hope. They’ve been better in that regard recently, but tonight is a game where they’ll have to show out.

Jaylen Brown is also a player to watch. The Sixers beefed up their depth on the wings, so it won’t be as easy to Tatum and Brown to get whatever they want off the dribble. They’ll have to play a solid, all-around game if the Celtics are going to come out of this one with a win.

Lastly, Al Horford may be the key to this entire matchup. Without Aron Baynes in the lineup, he’ll have to take on the responsibility of guarding Joel Embiid. Horford has done well in the past, but containing Embiid is no sure thing. Look for Horford to play solid defense on the All-Star big man while stretching him out of the paint by hitting his perimeter shots.

Lineup changes

It’s possible Brad Stevens shakes up his rotations in this one after the Celtics have developed a bad habit of playing piss-poor defense in the second and third quarters. That may result in a starting lineup change. If so, I’d expect Marcus Morris to head to the bench with Brown going into the starting five. Morris has had a career year, but the bench might need a more steadying presence while Brown could benefit from playing more with Horford and Marcus Smart.

Another option could be as simple as changing who starts the second half. Stevens usually goes with his starters, but he might want to think about giving his best defensive unit a look to start the third quarter. If they have a lead, establishing a defensive presence early in the second half could keep the other team from getting hot where it carries into the fourth.

New-look Sixers

The Sixers are not the same team we saw this season and in the playoffs last spring. At and before the trade deadline, they acquired Tobias Harris, Boban Marjanovic, James Ennis, Jonathan Simmons and Mike Scott, while saying goodbye to Markelle Fultz, Landry Shamet, Mike Muscala and Wilson Chandler.

Their new additions may not be enough to beat a full-strength Celtics team playing good basketball, but they are a much more formidable foe than before all those trades. Harris should create some matchup problems for the Celtics as the Sixers’ new power forward, while Ennis and Simmons are both capable wing defenders to go along with Jimmy Butler and Ben Simmons.

One of the biggest weaknesses the Celtics exploited the last season-and-a-half was Philly’s lack of athleticism on the wing. That is no longer an issue for this Sixers team. For the Celtics’ wings to get their buckets on this team, they’ll have to work a lot harder.