3 Reasons the Sixers Can Actually Upset the Celtics

If we're being honest with ourselves, the Sixers don't stand much of a chance of upsetting the Boston Celtics in the first round of the 2026 NBA playoffs. Joel Embiid is sidelined as he recovers from an appendectomy, and that alone might be the difference between a competitive series and a cakewalk.

But the Embiid-less Sixers proved Wednesday in their play-in victory over the Orlando Magic that they won't go quietly into the night.

Tyrese Maxey spent the offseason training to be a No. 1 option, which has been on full display all year. VJ Edgecombe hit the ground running as a rookie and still hasn't looked back. Andre Drummond is trying to become the third Splash Brother, apparently.

That still doesn't give them many pathways to victory against Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and the Celtics. But these are the three keys to at least put a scare into the Celtics.

1. VJ Edgecombe is That Dude

It's never a sure thing how a rookie will respond to his first taste of postseason action. VJ Edgecombe answered the bell by racking up 19 points and 11 rebounds in the Sixers' play-in tournament win over the Magic.

Afterward, Edgecombe admitted to reporters he was "tweaking a little bit" during the game. But he added, "If I gotta play wild for us to win, I'll play wild."

The Sixers might need Edgecombe to keep playing wild to have a chance against Boston.

The Celtics figure to sag off Edgecombe and dare him to beat them from deep. Even if his shot isn't falling, he'll need to make his impact felt defensively, on the glass and as a playmaker for the Sixers to stand a chance of pulling off the upset.

Luckily for them, he's going into this series with the right mentality.

"I ain't scared of nobody. I’m gonna be honest, I'm gonna guard regardless of who you is, I’m gonna try,” Edgecombe told reporters Wednesday. “I ain't scared, I ain't gonna back up if you're running at me. You just gotta run me over or something, man.”

2. The return of Playoff P?

Paul George's Sixers tenure to date isn't what anyone hoped for when they signed him to a four-year, $211.6 million max contract in the 2024 offseason. He's played only 78 of a possible 164 games thus far and is averaging only 16.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.8 steals in 30.7 minutes per game.

That level of production isn't exactly commensurate with a $50 million salary. But since his return from his 25-game suspension in late March, he's been far closer to the player whom the Sixers were originally expecting when they signed him.

In his first nine games back—not counting his 21-minute stint against the Milwaukee Bucks in their regular-season finale—George averaged 22.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.4 steals and 3.7 made threes while shooting 46.7% overall and 42.3% from deep. He had only 16 points on 6-of-16 shooting against Orlando on Wednesday, but he chipped in five rebounds, five assists and two steals while finishing as a plus-16 on the night.

The Sixers need a turn-back-the-clock performance from George against Boston, particularly with Embiid sidelined. He'll be tasked with both slowing down Tatum and Brown defensively and providing Maxey and Edgecombe with some much-needed offensive support.

Ahead of his return from his suspension, George told reporters that he was "feeling explosive again, feeling strong again" and felt like he was "back on that level of being able to perform and be the focal guy, be the scorer."

He'll now have a chance to prove it against Boston.

3. They're playing with house money

Without Embiid, no one realistically expects the Sixers to beat the Celtics. We've already seen this movie once too many times.

In a twisted way, that could work in the Sixers' favor. With the weight of expectations lifted off them, the pressure is fully on the Celtics.

Any time the Sixers go on a run in Games 1-2, the Celtics' crowd might tighten up. If the Sixers somehow steal one of those first two games, that could send Bostin into a downward spiral of anxiety.

Tatum, Brown, Derrick White and Payton Pritchard have all won a championship, so they're battle-tested in the playoffs. The rest of the Celtics' core from that championship is long gone, though.

Jordan Walsh, whom the Celtics are seemingly counting on as a Maxey stopper, played exactly 11 minutes in that championship run. Neemias Queta, the Celtics' starting center this year, played 13.

Had the Celtics not blown apart their championship core this past offseason, the Sixers would likely be drawing dead in this matchup. The gap-year Celtics overachieved in the regular season, but the playoffs are a different animal.

Thanks to Embiid's untimely appendicitis, the Sixers are effectively on a free roll in this year's playoffs. That gives them some freedom of mind that they've never had in the postseason.

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Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Spotrac and salary-cap information via RealGM.