76ers-Celtics news: Sixers trail Boston at half with season on the line; Nick Nurse makes some adjustments in Game 5

With their season on the line, the 76ers showed up with more much energy and effort in Game 5. They've been especially solid on offense after a slow Joel Embiid kicked into gear following a slow start. And they only trail 57-50 at halftime.

Embiid has 15 points on 5-of-13 shooting and Maxey has 13 on 5-for-10 despite both struggling from three. They're shooting a combined 1-for-10 from deep.

If the Sixers could ever figure out the defensive side of the ball, they might have a chance steal another game in Boston and extend the series. But they have been disjoined on defense to say the least.

Joel Embiid is starting to settle in after a rough start to Game 5.

Embiid's first shot off the game was a deep shot that didn't catch much of the rim. And after that miss, he seemed intent to prove to the Celtics that he could shoot from outside.

In the first quarter he three point-blank three-pointers from the top of the key and added another to start the second. But he's started to mix things up.

The 76ers trailed 23-21 at the end of the first quarter of Game 5 in Boston.

The Sixers were much more competitive and the offense looked more like it did prior to Joel Embiid's return, with Tyrese Maxey and Paul George leading the way in the box score. Maxey had eight points and George had six. VJ Edgecombe also knocked down an open three-pointer, which is a good sign after he went 0-of-7 shooting from three in Game 4.

Joel Embiid, who put up good numbers in his return — 26 points and 10 rebounds — looked a little frustrated to start this one. After scoring eight straight to start Game 4, he only had two through the first frame tonight.

Now that Joel Embiid is officially playing in Game 5, the focal point will become whether the 76ers can find a better blend on offense and more consistent effort on defense.

That obviously did not happen on Sunday, when Embiid's presence shifted everything the Sixers had done in the first three games, two of which were competitive and one of which the Sixers pulled out an improbable win.

Tyrese Maxey admitted that he needs to be more aggressive and that it is "unacceptable" for him to take only three shots in the first half of a game as he did in Game 4. VJ Edgecombe remains mired in a slump with the exception of his 30-point, 10-rebound outburst in Game 2.

According to ESPN, the NBA has shared with teams its new plan to reduce tanking among, a reform known as the "3-2-1 lottery."

Under the plan, the NBA's draft lottery would expand from 14 to 16 teams, flatten the odds, and include a relegation zone that would penalize the bottom three teams in the standings.

Teams that do not make the playoffs or play-in and avoid the relegation zone will receive three lottery balls each. Teams in the relegation zone will receive two lottery balls, as will the ninth and 10th seeds in each conference. The losers of 7-8 play-in game will receiver one ball each.

Joel Embiid didn’t lose Game 4 for the 76ers.

He didn’t win it for them, either.

Somewhere in between is a conundrum that will define the upcoming Sixers summer and those in the foreseeable future.

BOSTON – Now that Joel Embiid has returned from his appendectomy, what type of role does Adem Bona anticipate having in Tuesday’s crucial Game 5?

“Do my routine and stay ready,” Bona said before the Sixers’ shootaround at TD Garden. “Whenever my number is called, I’m going to go out there and do my job.”

Bona had started the series’ first three games in place of Embiid, but only played four minutes of Sunday’s Game 4 blowout loss when backup Andre Drummond temporarily left the game with an injury to his hip/quadriceps area. Bona went 2-of-2 from the floor for two points during that stint.

Tyrese Maxey offered the word “desperate” while describing how the 76ers must play Tuesday against the Boston Celtics with their season now on the brink of elimination.

The All-Star point guard also did not have an answer when asked why his team did not already possess that mentality in Sunday’s Game 4, when the Sixers trailed two games to one in the best-of-seven, first-round series and then got blasted by 32 points on their home floor.

“We should have been [desperate],” Maxey said. “We should have been.”

The stakes couldn't be higher for the 76ers tonight; their season will be over if they don't pull out a win against the Celtics in Boston.

A win tonight would force a Game 6 and bring the series back to Philadelphia. But the Sixers still have history to contend with.

The Boston Celtics are a prefect 32-0 when leading a playoff series 3-1, NBC's Mike Tirico noted in Sunday's broadcast.

Another game, another channel.

The 76ers vs. Celtics series jumps back to ESPN for tonight's Game 5, with tipoff scheduled around 7 p.m. ESPN's No. 1 crew – Mike Breen, Richard Jefferson, and former La Salle standout Tim Legler – will call all the action, with King of Prussia native Lisa Salters reporting from TD Garden.

NBA Tip-Off, featuring Charles Barkley and the Inside the NBA crew, will preview the game beginning at 6 p.m.