76ers' Tyrese Maxey Reacts to First Half Struggles Against Celtics in Game 4
Philadelphia 76ers star Tyrese Maxey could not lead the team past the Boston Celtics in Game 4 on Sunday. Maxey finished with 22 points and six assists on 50.0% shooting. The combo guard did not shoot enough, which led the 76ers to fall behind and trail for the rest of the contest.
Even with Joel Embiid, who played his first game since having appendectomy surgery, the 76ers struggled to keep up with the Celtics. Embiid finished with 26 points, 10 rebounds and six assists on 7-for-9 shooting from the free throw line.
After the 128-96 defeat, Maxey reacted to his subpar performance against the Celtics.
Tyrese Maxey Addressed His Lack of Attempts in the First-Half
Maxey did not shoot enough attempts in the first half and only had seven points on three attempts. This led the 76ers to trail the game, 58-38. During his postgame interview, the two-time All-Star reacted to the lack of shots he took.
"That's on me, that's absolutely unacceptable," Maxey said.
Maxey on what led to him taking just 3 shots in the first half: "That's on me, that's absolutely unacceptable."
— Kyle Neubeck (@KyleNeubeck) April 27, 2026
The Celtics spoiled Embiid's return and now have a 3-1 lead in the series, with a chance to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals. Maxey was not satisfied with the game's result and admitted that the opposing team did a better job of showing more effort.
"They just kind of just moved us around, pushed us around, offensively and defensively. Got it to wherever spot they wanted to get to. No resistance, and that's unacceptable."
"That's not our brand of basketball that we play," he continued. "Even the first game, they made some shots and stuff. But like, we was pretty physical."
#Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey on the tough defensive performance in the loss: "They just kind of just moved us around, pushed us around, offensively and defensively. Got it to wherever spot they wanted to get to. No resistance, and that's unacceptable." pic.twitter.com/xjCR1JASsx
— Ky Carlin (@Ky_Carlin) April 27, 2026
The Celtics were able to get to their spots tonight with ease, Maxey continued. It also reached a point where the 76ers thought they should overhelp on the defensive end. However, the star guard said that Boston isn't a team that should overhelp, given the amount of offensive firepower that they have. Maxey emphasized that Philly should put more effort into the defensive end for Game 5.
Head coach Nick Nurse also noticed how the Celtics played with more urgency. Nurse pointed out that the 76ers were outplayed, which became their biggest problem of the evening.
"They were more aggressive, quicker, wanted to chase them down more than we did. Just didn't seem like we could get bodies on them… It was a huge problem," Nurse said.
The 76ers will try to keep their season alive on Tuesday for Game 5.
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This story was originally published April 26, 2026 at 10:52 PM.