Jayson Tatum throws down an emphatic dunk early in his 35-point night in the Celtics' rout of the 76ers on Thursday night.
Jayson Tatum throws down an emphatic dunk early in his 35-point night in the Celtics' rout of the 76ers on Thursday night.Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff
There was a time not long ago when the Celtics and 76ers had one of the NBA’s most simmering rivalries. But injuries and inconsistencies have caused Philadelphia to unravel this season, and it is unlikely to even make the play-in tournament.
Not that the Celtics feel bad for the 76ers, of course. But the spice, at least temporarily, has vanished.
The teams met on Thursday night for the final time this year, and neither roster resembled the one that started this year with great expectations. For the Celtics, the absences were mostly related to rest and recuperation as they set their sights on next month’s playoffs.
For the 76ers, the absences were mostly related to the fact that their season is, for all intents and purposes, over, and if their first-round draft pick falls outside the top six, they will have to send it to the mighty Thunder. They are now incentivized to fail.
So, in a sense, both teams accomplished their goals in Boston’s 123-105 romp.
Jayson Tatum had 35 points to lead Boston. Payton Pritchard added 19, and rookie Baylor Scheierman scored a career-high 15. Kelly Oubre Jr. led the 76ers with 27 points.
Boston was without Kristaps Porzingis (illness), Jaylen Brown (rest), Jrue Holiday (finger), Sam Hauser (ankle), and Al Horford (rest). The 76ers were missing Paul George (groin), Joel Embiid (knee), Tyrese Maxey (back), Kyle Lowry (hip), and Eric Gordon (wrist).
Derrick White, who erupted for a career-high 41 points against the Trail Blazers on Wednesday, picked up where he left off Thursday. He hit two quick 3-pointers and scored 8 points over the game’s first 2 minutes, 30 seconds to stake Boston to an early lead. His night took a sour turn when he had a tooth knocked out by Oubre, but he returned later and finished with 12 points.
In addition to being undermanned, the 76ers appeared unmotivated for much of this game, too. In the first quarter Tatum got to the rim whenever he simply lowered his head and drove in that direction and crafted a relatively ho-hum 18-point quarter that gave the Celtics a 35-24 lead.
But the Celtics received key contributions from other areas, too. Torrey Craig drilled a pair of first-half 3-pointers and had a nice follow slam. And Scheierman took advantage of his rare opportunities with several productive stints.
The rookie entered Thursday just 1 for 15 from the 3-point line this season, but he drilled a pair of them in the second quarter.
The 76ers’ effort level, meanwhile, began to wane. During one trip upcourt at the end of the second quarter, the Celtics faced almost no resistance as they gobbled up three offensive rebounds and subsequently walked into wide-open shots.
A Tatum 3-pointer with 8:15 left in the third quarter gave the Celtics a 71-50 lead, their largest up to that point.
The 76ers crawled back with a mild run and pulled within 87-77 on an Oubre 3-point play with 2:01 left. But Scheierman steadied the Celtics with a 3-pointer and blew a kiss toward the 76ers bench as he jogged back on defense, helping spark a 20-2 run that was capped by three consecutive Neemias Queta baskets.
Celtics forward Miles Norris made his NBA debut in the fourth quarter.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.