Celtics opening night preview





The Boston Celtics will host the Philadelphia 76ers on October 22nd to open the season. This will be the first time since the 2016 season the Celtics have not been a marquee matchup on opening night.  

During the preseason, we saw Joe Mazzulla use a variety of starting lineups. It is unclear what the opening night starting lineup will be, especially with the uncertainty of Jaylen Brown's hamstring injury that he suffered in the final preseason game.

Joe Mazzulla has stated that Brown is "day-to-day," leaving his status up in the air. The 76ers also have their own injury concerns to deal with, as Jared McCain will miss the first two weeks of the season, and Paul George is unlikely to play on opening night. 

If Jaylen Brown is unable to play, we could see a starting lineup that features two big men, something we saw utilized in 3 of the 4 preseason games. Anfernee Simons would also be the most likely player to fill in for Brown, giving the offense another offensive creator alongside White and Pritchard. 

While the offense may take a dip, there is still plenty of firepower throughout the roster. We will get to see how new addition Anfernee Simons plays in a new system and how Payton Pritchard will handle an even more expanded role. 

With some of the team's sharpshooters now gone, it will be interesting to see if Mazzulla sticks with the three-point heavy attack or if he opts for a higher-paced fast-break-style offense. The 76ers are not littered with high-level defenders, so we will get an immediate glimpse at how Joe Mazzulla and the Celtics offense have adapted. 

The big question will be how the team performs defensively. The team's premier defender is now a perimeter defender in Derrick White, so facing a team with an interior force in Joel Embiid to start the season will give us an idea of how the defense will look. 

While Neemias Queta and Chris Boucher are not superstar names, we have seen the Celtics deploy double big lineups against Joel Embiid, and there is a chance we see it again in this game. 

There are a lot of questions heading into the 2026 season; playing a hated rival at home will briefly answer some of those. With some strong and unexpected performances in the preseason, we will see how that carries over and if the Celtics can start the season off strongly. 


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