After two games against the Denver Nuggets in Abu Dhabi, the Celtics return to TD Garden to take on division rival Philadelphia 76ers. While the Celtics stood firm in the offseason and brought back their same core, the 76ers revamped their roster in the offseason in hopes of catching up with the Celtics and in hopes of finally getting out of the second round of the playoffs.

Gone are Tobias Harris, Buddy Hield, Nicolas Batum, De’Anthony Melton, Robert Covington, Paul Reed, Cameron Payne and Mo Bamba. Their new additions include Paul George, Caleb Martin, Guerschon Yabusele, Eric Gordon, Reggie Jackson, Andre Drummond, Jared McCain and Adem Bona. They’re hoping Paul George will form a Big 3 with Maxey and Embiid to challenge the Celtics for the title.

As with any preseason game, it is difficult to say who will definitely start for both teams. I expect the Celtics to stick with the same five teams that started against the Nuggets since they haven’t played since Sunday, October 6th. Joe Mazzulla has said that Al Horford will play in at least one or two of the remaining preseason games, but with Luke Kornet fitting in well as a starter, Horford could come off the bench if he plays.

The 76ers started Tyrese Maxey, Eric Gordon, Kelly Oubre, Caleb Martin and Andre Drummond in their first game and replaced Gordon with Paul George in their second game. They’re playing back-to-back games after losing to the Timberwolves 121-111 in Iowa on Friday night, so I doubt they’ll play him in back-to-back games.

Since Philly’s starters all played between 23 and 26 minutes on Friday, we probably won’t see them at all in this game. Additionally, 76ers coach Nick Nurse said most of the veterans would be rested in this game, although only Embiid is on their injured list. It’s hard to guess who will start, so I’ve listed the second option at each position on the depth chart. But it’s just a guess.

The Celtics were 3-1 against the 76ers last season. They will play four times this season, starting with a clash on Christmas Day. They will also compete on February 2nd, February 20th and March 6th. The Celtics are 270-197 overall against the 76ers and 157-56 in games in Boston.

The Celtics returned from Abu Dhabi with no new injuries. Kristaps Porzingis remains out for the Celtics as he recovers from offseason ankle surgery. Joel Embiid has not played in any of Philly’s games so far and is questionable for this game as they look to start the season healthy with him. Embiid is the only player on the injured list, but I don’t expect any of the starters from their last game to play.

Likely Celtics starters

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Celtics reserves
Sam Hauser
Al Horford
Payton Pritchard
Neemias Queta
Baylor Scheierman
Jaden Springer
Xavier Tillman, Sr
Jordan Walsh

2-way player
JD Davison
Drew Peterson
Anthony Watson

Training camp contracts
Ron Harper, Jr
Jay Scrubb
Dmytro Skapintsev
Lonnie Walker IV

Injuries/losses
Kristaps Porzingis (ankle) is out

Head coach
Joe Mazzulla

Likely 76ers starters

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Sixers reserves
Adem Bona
Tyrese Maxey
Kelly Oubre, Jr
Caleb Martin
Andrew Drummond
Paul George
Reggie Jackson
Jared McCain
Judah Mintz

2-way player
Jeff Dowtin, Jr
Justin Edwards
Lester Quinones

Training camp contracts
Max Fiedler
Isaiah Mobley
Jordan Tucker

Injuries/losses
Joel Embiid (rest) questionable

Head coach
Nick Nurse

Key Matches

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  Jrue holiday
  
  

  Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images
  

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  Kyle Lowry
  
  

  Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images
  

Jrue Holiday vs. Kyle Lowry
With Maxey likely to miss the second consecutive game for Philly, my guess is that Kyle Lowry will be the starter, although one of the veterans and older players, Reggie Jackson, may start in Maxey’s place. On Friday, Lowry played just 8.5 minutes and finished the game with 3 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists. He missed both shots he made.

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  Luke Kornet
  
  

  Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images
  

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  Guerschon Yabusele
  
  

  Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images
  

Luke Kornet vs. Guerschon Yabusele
Andre Drummond has started both 76ers games so far, but since he played 24 minutes on Friday, I doubt we’ll see him in this game. Luke Kornet started both games for the Celtics and will likely start in this game as well, but there’s a chance Al Horford starts as well. Yabusele wasted no time in taking advantage of his second chance in the NBA. In the first game against the Breakers, he came off the bench first and finished the game with 15 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists and 1 steal while shooting 100% from the field and 100% from distance. On Friday, he finished the game with 3 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block in 11 minutes of play.

Honorable mention
Jaylen Brown vs. Ricky Council IV
As with the other starters, I’m just assuming the Council will go first. In the first two games, he averaged 9 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting 67% from the field and 67% from distance. This is his second season with the 76ers and he is coming off a solid first season.

Key to the game
defense – Defense will always be the key to winning any game, whether Summer League, preseason, regular season or playoffs. The Celtics won a championship last season because they prioritized defense. They must make defense their priority on every possession of every game.

rebound – In addition to defense, rebounding is the key to victory. It takes effort to get rebounds, and the Celtics will have to do their best to beat the Sixers on the boards. The Celtics will need to prevent the 76ers from scoring extra points around the basket as they had 20 second-chance points against the Breakers. The Celtics also need to gain additional possessions by rebounding on offense. If the Celtics want to win this game, it’s crucial that they do their best to crash the boards.

3-point shooting – The Celtics relied on shooting threes last season. They were first in the league making 43.5 three-pointers per game. They also ranked 1st in the league with 16.5 three-pointers per game. In their two games against the Nuggets, the Celtics attempted a whopping 54 three-pointers per game and made 35% of them. When the Celtics make their 3s they are hard to beat, but when they struggle to make 3s the game gets really ugly.

Chemistry – The Celtics return with essentially the same team that won the championship last season. The 76ers, on the other hand, lost 8 players from last season and replaced them with 8 new players. It may take a while to build chemistry between the new faces, while the Celtics should be able to pick up where they left off last season.

X factors
Home game – The Celtics return to the Garden for the first time since winning the championship there last season. The Garden should be rocking and the Celtics should be motivated by their fans.

It’s the preseason – Player development, building chemistry and player evaluation are the most important things for coaches in pre-season. We’ll likely see more rookies in this game, as well as players with camp contracts, as coaches evaluate players in the bubble for playing time and look to retain their starters for the regular season.

Officiating – I know I say this every game, but management can always be a deciding factor, even in preseason. Every team decides the game differently, whether they punish every little ticky-tack foul or give up a lot of contact and let the teams play. The referees are also in preseason, so it’s hard to know how they will handle this season. The Celtics need to get used to the way the game is called and not allow the calls to affect their concentration or play.