The Sixers haven’t beaten the Celtics in the playoffs in a long time — like, since Ronald Reagan’s first term
History is not on Philly’s side in its first-round matchup against Boston.
The most frequent playoff matchup in NBA history is back.
The No. 7 seed 76ers will take on the No. 2 seed Boston Celtics in a best-of-seven series beginning on Sunday for the first time since 2023. The rivalry is renewed for a 24th time, by far the most in NBA history, with the second-most played being the Celtics and the New York Knicks (14 series). And it’s been pretty lopsided in the Celtics’ favor.
Boston leads with 15 series wins, and have a 66-50 overall playoff record against Philadelphia. The matchup goes all the way back to when the 76ers were the Syracuse Nationals in the 1950s.
More eye-popping is that the Sixers haven’t topped the Celtics in a playoff series since the 1982 Eastern Conference finals. The Sixers went on to lose in the NBA Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games.
At that time, Ronald Reagan was just over a year into his first term as President of the United States; Allen Iverson was about to turn 7 years old; Sixers forward Justin Edwards’ mother, Ebony Twiggs, wasn’t even born yet; and Sixers coach Nick Nurse was just a 15-year-old high school student.
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On paper, it doesn’t look like the Sixers’ current streak of six straight playoff series losses to the Celtics is going to end. They are again the underdogs, and by a considerable margin. The Celtics are -900 favorites to win the series over the Sixers (+600), according to DraftKings.
The two teams split the regular-season series, 2-2, but Boston got star Jayson Tatum back earlier than expected from an Achilles injury, while the Sixers will be without former MVP Joel Embiid following his appendectomy.
But the games still need to be played, so while we wait for the series to kick off, here are some more facts about the postseason history between these two historic franchises.
Winning in the playoffs
The Celtics are two years removed from their 13th NBA title — their first since 2008 — while the 76ers have not made even the conference finals since 2001.
In their last postseason meeting, the Celtics eliminated the Sixers in Game 7 of the 2023 Eastern Conference semifinals. Tatum set a then-NBA Game 7 record with 51 points (and 13 rebounds) to send Philadelphia home.
To add to their recent success, the Celtics have won 83 NBA playoff games since drafting Jaylen Brown in 2016. Boston has also made the playoffs in every season since Brown joined the franchise.
In stark contrast, the Sixers have won 83 playoff games since Julius Erving retired in 1987, and have only made one NBA Finals appearance in the 39 years since — the 4-1 loss to the Lakers in 2001.
Getting out of the first round
Since their 2001 Finals run, the Sixers have made it out of the first round just seven times (in 24 years). The last time was in 2023 — just to lose to the Celtics in seven games in the next round.
Meanwhile, Boston has a 4-0 series record in the first round under current head coach Joe Mazzulla and the Celtics have escaped the first round in seven of the last eight postseasons.
Star power on both sides
The Sixers have needed franchise legends to take down the Celtics in the playoffs. No Sixers team without either Wilt Chamberlain or Julius Erving has ever beaten the Celtics in a playoff series.
Even Iverson fell to Boston in the postseason, dropping a first-round best-of-five series in 2002, the year after leading the Sixers to the Finals.
While Wilt and Dr. J aren’t playing Sunday, the Sixers do have plenty of star power, including first-time All-Star starter Tyrese Maxey, who led the way with 31 points in the team’s play-in win over the Orlando Magic.
But part of the reason the 76ers are heavy underdogs is the expectation that Embiid will at least miss the beginning, if not all, of the first round. Embiid had scored at least 26 points in four of his last five appearances before being sidelined with appendicitis.
» READ MORE: Tyrese Maxey, superstar? The Sixers will need him to be to have any chance against the Celtics. | David Murphy
There’s also Paul George, still rounding into form following his 25-game suspension, and star rookie VJ Edgecombe, who scored 34 points against the Celtics on Oct. 22, marking the most in an NBA debut since Chamberlain had 43 in 1959. Could there be more magic in store for Edgecombe in his playoff debut?
On the other hand, the Celtics have their star, Tatum, back from a ruptured Achilles he suffered just 11 months ago. And they are 13-3 with Tatum this season.
Tatum has won all three series he’s played against the Sixers, including a first-round sweep in 2020, and has won 12 of his 16 postseason games against them. Tatum has averaged 27 points, eight rebounds, and four assists in those three series.
Game 1: Sixers at Celtics, 1 p.m. Sunday, ABC
Game 2: Sixers at Celtics, 7 p.m. Tuesday, NBCSN/Peacock
Game 3: Celtics at Sixers, 7 p.m. April 24, Prime Video
Game 4: Celtics at Sixers, 7 p.m. April 26, NBC/Peacock
*Game 5: Sixers at Celtics, TBD April 28
*Game 6: Celtics at Sixers, TBD April 30
*Game 7: Sixers at Celtics, TBD May 2
* If necessary