The Boston Celtics had to wait a little bit longer than initially anticipated to take a 2-1 series lead over the Philadelphia 76ers in their Eastern Conference semifinals series.
The MVP had to get his trophy after all.
The folks at Wells Fargo Center pushed tip from 7:30 p.m. ET to about 7:53 p.m. ET, as NBA commissioner Adam Silver presented Joel Embiid with the Michael Jordan trophy and sparked a ceremony that included a speech from the MVP himself. That gave the Celtics some extra time to prepare.
“I was in the back during the ceremony,” Jayson Tatum said postgame, per NBA-provided video. “That’s not because he got the award today. I always go, I’ve got a routine, when the buzzer sounds before they do the anthem and the intros so it’s not nothing different. I could hear it. They had it on the TV so I saw it and it just had me really ready to play.
“You could feel the energy from the crowd in the building. I’m happy for him. He earned it. He deserved it. I’m just focused on trying to win the game.”
The Celtics came out firing, holding the lead for the majority of the game and shutting down just about everyone not named MVP. It was a night of focus for Boston on the road, and they had extra time to prepare thanks to the ceremony.
Here are more notes from Celtics-76ers Game 3:
— James Harden was a relative non-factor in this one, just as he was in Game 2. Though the 10-time All-Star was the driving force behind Philadelphia’s win in Game 1, scoring 45 points on 17-of-30 shooting, he has been equally disappointing in each of the last two contests — scoring a total of 25 points on 5-of-28 shooting across 73 total minutes.
— Grant Williams was tremendous in helping guard Embiid, even after being stomped on late in the fourth quarter. His gritty performance earned him high marks from the Celtics.
— Robert Williams III left the game after saving a loose ball midway through the fourth quarter. The Celtics training staff was looking at his forearm on the bench before a TV timeout saw him head back to the locker room. He did not return.
— Al Horford shot the lights out of the ball following his perceived slight pregame. The 36-year-old set multiple NBA records from beyond the arc in the win.
— The Celtics and Sixers will remain in Philly for Game 4. Tipoff from Wells Fargo Center is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on Sunday afternoon.
