Tatum Says Honest Halftime Talk Helped Celtics Erase 26-Point Deficit Against Sixers

The Boston Celtics came back from a 26-point deficit to beat the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, a turnaround that Jayson Tatum credited to a candid conversation at halftime.

Boston had played poorly in the opening half. Tyrese Maxey, who also hurt the Celtics on Christmas Day last month, hit four of his first five 3-point attempts and played with plenty of confidence as Philadelphia built a 17-point lead at the break. The Celtics' defense was loose, with the same lapses in rotations and closeouts that have shown up at times this season, and this came even though Sixers stars Joel Embiid and Paul George were out of the lineup in street clothes. On offense, Boston got little beyond the occasional long jumper from Kristaps Porzingis.

Everything pointed to a loss to a team sitting in 11th place. Tatum said the group had to be honest with itself in the locker room. Philadelphia had scored 20 points in transition, he said, and Boston's competitive spirit was lacking. According to Tatum, coach Joe Mazzulla told the players that if they were tired, he would sit them and let the "Stay Ready group" play. "We just had a choice to make," Tatum said.

The response was not immediate. The Sixers pushed their lead to as many as 26 points in the third quarter. "It was a long third quarter," Tatum said, adding that the team kept fighting and that it brought out its best. "Our competitive joy was there on both ends and it was just fun to be a part of," he said.

At one low point, former Celtic Guerschon Yabusele dunked over Derrick White and beat his chest, a sign of how comfortable the Sixers felt with their cushion. White said it felt in that moment as if it simply was not Boston's night. He described himself as frustrated and said he tried to tell teammates to stick together, noting that trying to get back into a game like that is a five-point swing.

The defense eventually tightened. Boston held Philadelphia to 16 points in the third quarter, and Maxey managed just two points in the period, both on free throws. At the other end, Tatum, White and Sam Hauser combined to make seven of eight 3-pointers in the final frame.

Mazzulla said the shots were not much different from those Boston had gotten in the first half. "The math evened out, but you've got to play hard, math and effort," he said. He added that the Celtics played hard after halftime, the shooting caught up, and the team then executed and made big plays at both ends.

Jaylen Brown said the team shifted its mindset. "It's the NBA," he said. "On any given night, there's enough talent where teams can play well. But, we're the better team. We just had to stick with it." He also praised Sixers coach Nick Nurse, saying his players were well prepared and used different coverages to try to slow Boston down.