PJ Tucker shares a message to Sixers in prep for Game 6 vs. Celtics
BOSTON–The Philadelphia 76ers did their job on Tuesday. They went into TD Garden and defeated the Boston Celtics 115-103 in Game 5 and now lead the series 3-2. This series shifts back to Philadelphia with the Sixers now looking to eliminate the Celtics and advance.
If the Sixers can do it, they will advance to their first Eastern Conference finals since the Allen Iverson days of 2001.
With that being said, the Celtics are not just going to lie down. They have been in tough situations as a group before. In the 2022 semifinals, they were in this exact position. They trailed the Milwaukee Bucks 3-2 after dropping Game 5 at home and they went on the road and won Game 6 before rolling in Game 7 back at home. The Sixers have to prepare for a heated battle.
“Even keeled, humble, hungry, and do the same things we’ve been doing,” said PJ Tucker when asked about his message to the Sixers. “I told everybody, we’re not excited. We expect to win, but at the same time, we respect our opponents and we’re gonna come out and play hard because we know they are.”
Of course, it helps that the Sixers will be headed home in this situation where they have been successful for a long time, but the Celtics are a veteran-tested bunch. This is going to be nothing new for them and Tucker wants the Sixers to be ready.
Tucker faced this Celtics team in 2022 as a member of the Miami Heat and he knows firsthand how tough they can be.
“It feels good to get a chance to close out at home, but it’s not over,” Tucker warned. “We still gotta play. They’re gonna come, they’re gonna give us everything they got and it’s just one of those games that it’s gonna be emotional, but we got to keep our heads and stay focused and keep our mind on the goal.”
Game 6 is Thursday night from the Wells Fargo Center.
