In one of the most stunning collapses in recent NBA playoff history, the Boston Celtics blew a 3-1 series lead and were eliminated by the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round. The decisive Game 7 at TD Garden on Saturday night ended in heartbreak for the Celtics, who watched their season slip away amid a barrage of missed three-pointers in the closing stages.
The Celtics had multiple opportunities to close out the series but faltered in the endgame. Their vaunted three-point shooting, a cornerstone of their offense throughout the season, completely deserted them when it mattered most. Open looks that usually find the bottom of the net rimmed out or clanged off the iron, sealing a painful defeat.
Longtime Celtics supporter and prominent sports commentator Bill Simmons captured the frustration perfectly in what would be his final post before the loss.
“Celtics wound up 13/49 from three, and they bricked several wide-open threes in crunch time,” Simmons wrote on X.
True to form, the ever-opinionated Simmons went silent on the platform after the final buzzer, a telling sign of just how deflating the outcome was for one of Boston’s most vocal advocates.
The numbers underscored the collapse. Boston shot just 34.5% from beyond the arc across the first six games of the series. In Game 7, the struggles intensified: Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, and Jaylen Brown combined to shoot 10-of-32 from three. Sam Hauser started strong, going 3-of-3, but missed his final three attempts. Most damning of all, the Celtics missed their last nine three-point attempts of the game — a drought that could not have come at a worse moment.
Embed X: https://twitter.com/BillSimmons/status/2050745168828252657
This defeat marked the 14th time in NBA history that a team has been eliminated after holding a 3-1 lead in a playoff series, a sobering reminder of how fragile postseason momentum can be.
For Simmons, a Massachusetts native who grew up in Marlborough, the loss undoubtedly stings more than most. He began his career as a reporter for the Boston Herald before rising to prominence online as “The Boston Sports Guy,” known for his sharp, engaging columns that blended analysis with unapologetic hometown passion. Even after joining ESPN and later founding The Ringer, Simmons has never hidden his allegiance to the Celtics. He was among those publicly championing head coach Joe Mazzulla for Coach of the Year honors this season.
Saturday’s result represents more than just an early exit — it’s a stark illustration of how quickly a dominant position can evaporate. The Celtics’ inability to convert open threes in the biggest moments of Game 7 turned a series they were expected to win into a cautionary tale. For Bill Simmons and the devoted Celtics faithful, it was an ending that no one saw coming, yet one that Simmons’ own pre-game observation eerily foreshadowed.
Sometimes, the most fitting commentary comes right before the final blow.