Regarding the tanking aspect, however, head coach Joe Mazzulla didn't even want to bring that up, saying that he doesn't pay attention to it and that he has a responsibility to the fans in Boston and the players in Boston to go out every single night and do his best job to ensure the team has a chance to win.

The Boston Celtics handed the Philadelphia 76ers their first loss of the season and delivered a wire-to-wire reminder of their resilience, edging out a tense 109-108 victory to open NBA Cup play on Friday night.

The Celtics led by 24 points in the second quarter on Friday and were still fortunate to leave Philadelphia with a win.

Kevin Durant led the way for the Rockets in Wednesday’s victory as he ended the game with 31 points, five rebounds and three blocks while Jabari Smith Jr. recorded 25 points, five rebounds and five assists. While both teams are seeking a key victory in Saturday’s matchup, both squads may be without some of their key players due to injuries.

The former Celtics big man will have to work his way into Portland’s rotation. The Blazers have leaned on Donovan Clingan as their starter thus far, with Duop Reath and first-round pick Yang Hansen coming off the bench. It’s unclear how Williams fits in the front court, but getting him back on the court is still a positive sign.

Josh Minott and Hugo Gonzalez have both been strong additions to the Celtics rotation, with the former seemingly earning a starting role after multiple impactful performances. Of course, we're still early in the season,

Of course, the Celtics are still not at the necessary level to be viewed as a contending team. In fact, they're at least one elite-level player and a Jayson Tatum return away from being back to the necessary skill level of a contending roster.

Throughout the first quarter of the Friday night matchup between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Boston Celtics, VJ Edgecombe attempted just one shot. Since the

If the Celtics can figure out how to build on that performance, they could be a sleeper team in the Eastern Conference, despite all of the cost-cutting moves the front office made during the summer. In a recent episode of the "Hoops Tonight" podcast,