Doc Rivers on Celtics Matchup Having 'More Juice' Than Others

Sixers head coach Doc Rivers discusses the importance of Wednesday's matchup against the Celtics.

As the Philadelphia 76ers continue their 82-game schedule on Wednesday night with a matchup against the Boston Celtics, many are probably viewing the game as a litmus test for the Sixers.

Considering the Sixers entered the 2022-2023 NBA season with championship aspirations, their games against high-profile Eastern Conference opponents tend to have more meaning. Or, as Sixers head coach Doc Rivers puts it — they tend to have more juice.

When asked whether the Sixers view Wednesday’s game as a barometer matchup or not, Rivers didn’t seem so sure if that was really the case or not.

“I guess,” Rivers said when asked. “But if we win, what is the test? I just think any of the times you play a good team, it has more meaning. It just has more juice. I don’t know if it has more meaning. It just has more juice to it.”

While Rivers isn’t downplaying the meaning of the matchup, he noted that many different circumstances during the regular season could factor into the game, making it difficult for teams to gauge where they’re at compared to their opponent, win or lose.

“Again, you catch a team in the regular season, and we could be coming off a stretch, they could be playing well, they can have injuries, and that’s why you don’t overdo a regular season game except for Boston’s a team you have to beat to get to the Finals because they’re the Eastern Conference Champions,” Rivers explained. “So, might as well get in the habit now.”

When the Sixers and the Celtics battled it out in October, the Celtics got the win. After taking the Sixers out 126-117, Boston issued the Sixers their first loss of the year as Philadelphia got off to a slow start. Since then, the Sixers have been thriving — but the Celtics haven’t slowed down. 

Wednesday’s game will be a battle of the East’s first seed against the third seed. While the Sixers won’t try to read too much into the game regardless of the results, it will be an important matchup regardless to see how both teams might fare against one another when the playoffs roll around. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.