The Philadelphia 76ers could be dangerous with James Harden in the lineup, but the Boston Celtics won't find out Tuesday.
Harden, whom the Sixers acquired from the Brooklyn Nets last Thursday in a blockbuster trade, has been ruled out through the All-Star break as he rehabs his left hamstring, the team announced Monday.
That means the Celtics won't see Harden on Tuesday when they travel to Philadelphia. But Boston still will have its hands full with the Sixers, who got 40 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists from MVP candidate Joel Embiid in Saturday night's win over the Cleveland Cavaliers to move to 34-22 on the season.
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With Harden sidelined and Seth Curry and Andre Drummond now in Brooklyn as part of that trade, here's what Philly's post-deadline starting five and rotation looks like:
Sixers' starting five
- PG Tyrese Maxey
- SG Matisse Thybulle
- SF Danny Green
- PF Tobias Harris
- C Joel Embiid
Sixers' key reserves
- F Georges Niang
- G Shake Milton
- G Furkan Korkmaz
- F Paul Reed
Boston's tallest task will be containing Embiid, who poured in 41 points against the Celtics in a Dec. 20 victory and racked up 25 points, 13 rebounds and six assists the last time these teams met in mid-January.
Boston Celtics
The C's have come a long way over the last month, though: They're riding an eight-game winning streak and are 2-0 with trade acquisition Derrick White in the lineup. Boston also could get a frontcourt boost if Daniel Theis is able to play Tuesday following his trade from the Houston Rockets.
Celtics-Sixers is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, with coverage beginning at 6:30 p.m. on NBC Sports Boston with "Celtics Pregame Live."