Play-by-play action for the Houston Rockets vs. Boston Celtics NBA game from November 1, 2025 on ESPN.

The Boston Celtics handed the Philadelphia 76ers their first loss of the season and delivered a wire-to-wire reminder of their resilience, edging out a tense 109-108 victory to open NBA Cup play on Friday night.

Nevertheless, the Celtics must make do with what they're working with. After all, there's no single trade that could suddenly get the team back on track. In truth, it may take a year or two before Mazzulla is coaching a contending-level roster again.

The former Celtics big man will have to work his way into Portland’s rotation. The Blazers have leaned on Donovan Clingan as their starter thus far, with Duop Reath and first-round pick Yang Hansen coming off the bench. It’s unclear how Williams fits in the front court, but getting him back on the court is still a positive sign.

Regarding the tanking aspect, however, head coach Joe Mazzulla didn't even want to bring that up, saying that he doesn't pay attention to it and that he has a responsibility to the fans in Boston and the players in Boston to go out every single night and do his best job to ensure the team has a chance to win.

And for today's article, we will continue with the seventh of 14 people to wear the No. 42, Boston big man alum Joe Wolf. After ending his college career at UNC, Wolf was picked up with the 13th overall selection of the 1987 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers.

Of course, the Celtics are still not at the necessary level to be viewed as a contending team. In fact, they're at least one elite-level player and a Jayson Tatum return away from being back to the necessary skill level of a contending roster.

Boston Celtics forward Josh Minott has taken a huge jump in his first season in Boston, and expressed how happy he is with his new home. The fourth-year forward

If the Celtics can figure out how to build on that performance, they could be a sleeper team in the Eastern Conference, despite all of the cost-cutting moves the front office made during the summer. In a recent episode of the "Hoops Tonight" podcast,

Rockets guard Amen Thompson had a strong game at both ends Saturday as Houston throttled Boston for its third straight victory.