Simone's Six: Neemias Queta dominates, Jaylen Brown's patience, and effort without credit in Celtics-76ers

BOSTON — When all hope seemed lost, Neemias Queta was there to save the day. Dreadful offensive production plagued the Boston Celtics in the first quarter, and the Philadelphia 76ers looked primed for a run. Queta’s second-quarter heroics lifted the Celtics back up onto their feet.

But it was more than that.

Queta’s career night was the story of Sunday. He was the main event. And yet, under the noses of everyone giving Queta MVP chants at TD Garden, the Celtics’ commitment to their core principles kept them in front.

So, how did it all break down?

1. Neemias Queta, the scorer

Pure class.

Queta had 27 points, 17 rebounds (10 offensive), two assists, one steal, and three blocks against the Sixers. A career-high in points for the Portuguese big man.

TD Garden knew how special his performance was. When Queta took a seat with 5:39 to go in the second quarter, he already had a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double. As he walked to the bench, he got a standing ovation from the Celtics fans in attendance.

“Just trying to have fun out there,” Queta said. “When stuff like that really goes well, and you're able to capitalize on stuff like that, it’s really, really cool to see, and you just want to keep on getting better. Keep your bread and butter, your bread and butter, and once the opportunity allows itself, go out there and just have fun. I think I can expand my game with that type of stuff, and it will only make us better.”

Philadelphia wanted to pressure Boston’s ball-handlers. They didn’t want Jaylen Brown and Derrick Whiteto be comfortable running the offense. So, they sent extra pressure. But that left pockets of the floor open, and Queta found the space beautifully.

Watch this play.

Queta runs the pick-and-roll with White, but Andre Drummondsteps up to take away White’s drive. He wants to make him uncomfortable.

So, instead of just sprinting toward the basket, Queta waits for a moment. He bides his time until White has completely occupied two defenders, then, before Cam Paynecan help over from the corner, he dashes to the basket.

Then here, in another pick-and-roll with White, Queta makes the right read again.

Since the action is higher up the floor, Drummond helped up to the three-point line to take away White’s drive. Again, Philadelphia wanted to put extra pressure on Boston’s ball-handlers.

So, Queta rolled immediately. He got behind the pick-and-roll, White found him, and from there, the big man got to show off some of his lesser-known skills.

He put the ball on the ground, two-stepped to the hoop, and finished with a nice layup.

Queta’s progression as a pick-and-roll big has been incredible this season.

“It’s so much easier for me right now,” he said. “I think just the amount of repetitions I've been having with these guys every day, kind of understanding what they like, what they don't like. The game is just slowing down for me, too. And once stuff like that happens, when they got two guys on the ball, just me being able to go out there and be a threat for defenses makes us so much more dangerous. So, whenever that stuff happens, I'm just trying to capitalize.”

2. Neemias Queta, the rebounder

Queta did more than just score on Sunday night. He was a monster on the glass. And he did it against Drummond, one of the best rebounders of the 2010s.

He nabbed 10 offensive rebounds and seven defensive rebounds, constantly keeping his nose to the ball.

There’s always some luck involved in rebounding, but Queta created his own luck. He refused to let the Sixers get the best of him. He refused to be beaten.

And on the offensive end, his undying desire to fight helped keep the Celtics’ offense afloat, especially when shots weren’t falling.

Queta has worked tirelessly to become the player he is today. And from Joe Mazzulla’s standpoint, the effort he’s put in hasn’t wavered.

“You gotta put your head down, you gotta chip away, you gotta have a level of professionalism, work ethic, [and] understanding,” Mazzulla said. “He's brought all that on. I [think] he's had great ownership and responsibility to what it calls for to be a starting center for the Celtics, and he's got to continue to get better. And he works at it. He cares. So, it’s to credit to him.”

3. Neemias Queta gets MVP chants

Queta’s MVP chants rang throughout TD Garden when he was at the free-throw line. Unfortunately, the end result was a couple of misses.

“It wasn’t great,” Queta said with a smile when asked about the MVP chants. “I kind of got distracted, [and] missed a couple of free throws, so got to work on that.”

Some MVP chants breaking out for Neemias Queta at the line — would imagine those are the first of his NBA career 19 point, 14 rebounds tonight pic.twitter.com/U8sq1Lk447— Noa Dalzell 🏀 (@NoaDalzell) March 2, 2026

4. How the Celtics pushed through bad offense

Boston couldn’t make anything at the beginning of this game. In the first quarter, they shot 8-of-26 (30.8%) from the field and 3-of-13 (23.1%) from three-point range.

As the night went on, their shooting luck fluctuated. Philadelphia’s ball pressure forced a few offensive ruts.

So, how did the Celtics battle through those pockets of the game? And how did they reignite their own momentum?

“The momentum comes from live-ball turnovers and offensive rebounds,” Mazzulla said. “And so, I think we only had maybe two live-ball turnovers in the second half, and then they had few offensive rebounds throughout the entire second half there. So, that's the key. And as long as we execute and we take care of the ball, we're gonna get good looks.”

Even after their ugly offensive showing in the first quarter, the Celtics were only down by two heading into the second. Why?

They only turned the ball over once.

Tyrese Maxeyis an elite transition scorer who loves to get out and run. But they didn’t let him do that in the first quarter. Boston gave up four offensive rebounds, but they still outscored the 76ers eight to 13 on second-chance points in the first quarter.

In the third, when Philadelphia managed to crawl back a bit, the Celtics turned the ball over five times. The Sixers scored seven points on fastbreak opportunities, and considering they only won the quarter by seven, that was the difference.

Boston’s offense hasn’t been perfect lately, but when they control the controllables, they’ll always have a chance to win.

That’s what Mazzulla cares about the most. That’s how they persevere throughout moments of offensive messiness on Sunday night.

5. Jaylen Brown’s decision-making

But those controllables weren’t Mazzulla’s only point of praise when asked about managing momentum.

“I think that started with Jaylen's balance,” Mazzulla said. “I thought he really picked his spots really well, in looking to attack and looking to distribute. Constantly creating two-on-ones. I think his trust in Neemi also gave Neemi a good game, and his ability to make plays in the seam. And then, playing off of Derrick, and Sam [Hauser], and Baylor [Scheierman], and those guys.

“So, you just have to execute even when you're not making shots, and you gotta keep guys out of transition. So, I thought a good job of that. I thought Jaylen [and] D-White did a good job managing the offense.”

White’s pick-and-roll mastery helped kickstart Queta’s big night, but Brown’s decision-making was exactly what Boston needed it to be on Sunday.

The Sixers tried different things to slow down Brown. And every time they switched up, he read them like a book.

And if they tried to guard one-on-one, he made them pay.

Here, the 76ers switch, Brown gets past Adem Bona, and then finishes over Dominick Barlowat the rim.

It was a methodical, multi-pronged attack by Brown.

And without it, the game would have looked a lot different.

6. Tip rebounds (no credit)

Watch these two offensive rebounds.

Who deserves the credit?

In the first, the ball bounces to White, who throws a lob to Queta.

In the second, the ball lands in Queta’s hands, and he lays it in for an and-one.

Now, watch them again through a new lens:

In the first, watch Scheierman.

In the second, watch Hauser.

These two rebounds were credited to White and Queta, respectively. But they didn’t actually create the second-chance opportunities.

It was actually Scheierman and Hauser tipping the ball to their teammates while fighting off opposing players.

I asked Mazzulla about this post-game, and even he mentioned that he thought these boards were credited.

“I think they do [count as rebounds],” he said.

“I think it’s a controlled tip. I don’t know. Have to look at it.”

Scheierman and Hauser didn’t get credit for their boards. But the Celtics know how important those plays are.

“Yeah, it's a good question,” Mazzulla said. “I don't know. I thought they did [get counted], but I don't know. But, to me, it's just important. Vooch [Nikola Vucevic] has been good at that since we've had him. Baylor has been good at that. I think Hugo, and Jordan, and Sam [have, too]. Really, it's just a part of the crashing, and we've got to continue to get better at it. But that's a good point. I don't know how that works.”

Boston grabbed 19 offensive rebounds on Sunday night, good for 30 second-chance points. Without those points, they don’t win the game. And they don’t get those points without the type of commitment they showed with plays like these.

Effort without credit, all in the pursuit of victory.