Last week: Beat Cleveland 110-88, lost at Indiana 122-117, lost to Philadelphia 115-109
This week: Wednesday at Dallas, Friday vs. Detroit
The good times hit a bump in the road for the Boston Celtics, with losses at Indiana and at home to the 76ers — who are now 2-0 against the Celtics this season. That took some of the luster off the return of Gordon Hayward, who had missed 13 games with a broken hand before coming back in the blowout win over the Cavaliers.
It’s hard to fault Kemba Walker for Boston’s struggles, as he averaged 31.7 points, 7.3 assists and 2.0 rebounds in 33.6 minutes per game over the three games last week, shooting 51.6 percent overall and hitting 45.9 percent on 12.3 3-point attempts per game. Walker had a season-high 44 points in the loss at Indiana on Wednesday.
Last week: Beat Toronto 110-104, beat Denver 97-92, won at Boston 115-109, beat New Orleans 116-109
This week: Sunday at Brooklyn, Wednesday vs. Miami, Friday vs. Dallas, Saturday vs. Washington
The Philadelphia 76ers‘ 4-0 week extended their current winning streak to five games, as they’ve been as hot as just about any team in the NBA (OK, the Bucks are in their own category) with nine wins in their last 10 games and winning 14 of their last 16. The 76ers could keep the good times rolling this week with three home games after a quick trip to Brooklyn on Sunday.
Philadelphia is 14-0 at home so far this season, outscoring opponents by a 111.1-98.9 margin. Tobias Harris had a terrific week for the Sixers last week, averaging 25.0 points, 6.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.3 blocks in 36.2 minutes per game, while shooting 49.4 percent overall and hitting 8-of-18 from 3-point range. Harris dropped 31 in the win over the Pelicans on Friday.