Tyrese Maxey, Sixers play Grinch in the Garden with impressive win over rival Celtics

That’s why it’s said that the NBA season doesn’t officially start until Christmas.

Philadelphia defeated the defending champion Boston Celtics 118-114 as the Sixers played their first game with their projected starting lineup from the offseason.

Tyrese Maxey was sensational from start to finish, leading all scorers with 33 points, shooting 12 of 23 from the field and providing 12 assists. He is the first Sixer to have at least 30 points and 10 assists on Christmas.

Despite a scary mistake before the game, Joel Embiid finished the game with 27 points and nine rebounds. He shot 8 of 15 from the floor.

Caleb Martin lived up to his Celtics reputation as a killer and scored 23 points on 8 of 11 shots. Paul George struggled with 12 points on 4 of 15 shooting, but hit a couple of big free throws to put the game on ice.

Here are some thoughts on the buzzer.

First quarter

• It was a pretty quick start for both offenses. Boston’s first two goals of the game were three-pointers by Al Horford, which of course was the case. Maxey also got off to an aggressive start with two threes of his own and a drive to the basket.
• Once again it was the Big 3 who dominated the shot selection early on. While Maxey’s jumpers fell, Embiid and George each made one of four starts from the floor. Embiid spent a fair amount of time at the rim early in the game, but got going with a couple of layups – the second being an and-1 for which he got the DX celebration.

• Andre Drummond was unavailable, but Guerschon Yabusele was the best option at backup center for this match. The Celtics play almost exclusively in five-out mode: 16 of their 23 field goals in the first half were three-pointers. Jayson Tatum responded well to a 7-0 Philly run, but the Sixers led by five points after Maxey ended the quarter with a layup.

Second quarter

• Another even start to the frame as Maxey kept his momentum going with a wide-open dunk to open the game. Yabusele responded to several Celtics three-pointers with a few of his own. The first three Caleb Martin took looked a little clunkier than Monday, but it still went in. He and Kelly Oubre Jr. were very helpful in knocking down Boston rebounds early on.
• The Sixers’ shots kept falling as they went on a lengthy 17-2 run and built a good chunk of their lead with Embiid and George on the bench. Martin fell three more times and had an impressive rebound as he flew around. Crazy how different he looks when his whole body isn’t falling apart.

• Just like in the first half, it was Tatum who began to close the gap at the end of the half. The Celtics were pretty focused on getting Embiid into space to attack him there and get him away from the rim. On the other hand, he hit a couple of mid-range jumpers and a three-pointer to maintain an eight-point lead at halftime. The 66 points the Sixers scored were the most in a first half for them all season.

Third quarter

• Kristaps Porzingis took a strange step on one of the first plays and limped afterwards. Although he returned to action after 13 minutes of the first half, Luke Kornet was there to start the second half in his place and the broadcast announced shortly afterwards that he was doubtful to return. Boston didn’t seem to miss him right away as it opened the half with a 6-0 run, which led to a timeout by Nurse.
• The Sixers’ offense was completely quiet, shooting 2 of 15 from the field to start the second half. A big part of that was because Maxey just wasn’t making the shots he did in the first half, but the offense as a whole started to play in a bit of a panic as things started to heat up. George had another poor shooting night, going 0-6 from beyond the arc after three quarters.
• In addition to Tatum having a good night, Jaylen Brown also got hot after scoring just two points in the first half. Brown shot 6 of 10 from the field in the third period. The field goal drought was finally broken with a baby hook from Yabusele. They managed to cobble together another basket to keep the score tied at 82 early in the fourth period.

Fourth quarter

• After barely making multiple threes in a game all season, Caleb Martin made seven tonight after scoring three on Monday. In addition to this time off to recharge his batteries, it must feel good for the Sixers to get a guy in and not lose his Celtic-killing skills. Maxey got going again and the Sixers went on an 18-2 run to start the quarter.
• The second unit with Maxey did such a good job that Nurse left them out for the first seven minutes of the quarter. The Sixers’ defense managed to overwhelm the Celtics for much of the game, but early in the fourth period they simply missed their shots.
• In no time, the Celtics went on an 11-0 run and suddenly turned the game into a one-possession game with just under two minutes left. The panic returned to the Sixers’ offense as Maxey turned over twice in the halfcourt before Nurse called a timeout.
• The situation became even more worrisome when Embiid was limping quite a bit after a foul. His left foot slipped a little while driving and his ankle twisted as a result. Hopefully it’s nothing, but unfortunately we’ll be keeping an eye on these plays for the rest of his career.
• A few free throws and an absurd layup by Maxey that went over the shot clock pushed the lead back to nine, but two more sloppy possessions allowed the Celtics to score a couple of baskets within seconds. They should have put the game away much earlier, but they actually put it away.

• The Sixers head west as part of their annual Disney on Ice road trip. Their next matchup will be on Saturday when they take on the Jazz in Utah at 9:30 p.m. ET.