Caleb Martin's dominance vs. Celtics put into perspective with crazy Stephen Curry stat
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In what was perhaps the Philadelphia 76ers' most impressive win of 2024-25, Caleb Martin's seven threes against the champion Boston Celtics helped his team secure a 118-114 Christmas Day victory at TD Garden. 76ers superstar center Joel Embiid put the league on notice after the win. Martin finished with 23 points, including seven threes, and joined an elite group of shooters, including Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry, for NBA players with 45+ threes at a 45% three-point clip in the last two calendar years.
Since January 2023, Martin has been 47.9% from deep on 96 attempts against the Celtics, per Bballtalkerz's Instagram.
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As a member of the Miami Heat, Martin connected on 22-of-45 (48.8%) from behind the arc against the Celtics in the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals. He played a significant role in Miami beating Boston after surrendering a 3-0 lead before winning Game 7 and advancing to the NBA Finals. Martin's shooting against the Celtics likely factored into Philadelphia signing Caleb to a four-year, $32 million deal over the summer.
His 23 points was one of three 76ers players who scored 20+ points in Wednesday's win, including Tyrese Maxey's team-high 33 points and Embiid's 27-point performance in the 76ers' Christmas Day win against the defending champions.
After the win, Embiid couldn't stop smiling. Congratulating his teammate on his impressive shooting night in the Sixers' win, Embiid revealed that Martin hates the Celtics as much as he does.
Therefore, seeing Caleb step up big didn't surprise Embiid, per Sixers Wire's Ky Carlin.
"He's playing against Boston. He hates them as much as I do."
Joel Embiid on Caleb Martin's big night: "He's playing against Boston. He hates them as much as I do." #Sixerspic.twitter.com/3ZwNYeaPFo
— Ky Carlin (@Ky_Carlin) December 26, 2024
Joel Embiid sends warning to the rest of the NBA after 76ers' win
76ers superstar Joel Embiid believes beating the Celtics on Christmas Day could start a significant turnaround to their 2024-25 campaign. While the 76ers remain under .500 (11-17), eleventh while trailing the Pistons in the Eastern Conference standings, they're 7-3 in their last ten games. And there's still plenty of basketball left, with only 28 games played in 2024-25.
While most would consider the 76ers' four-point win against the Celtics their best win of the regular season, Embiid says his team still hasn't reached its full potential, per ESPN's Tim Bontemps.
"We got a high ceiling," Embiid said. "It's all about us putting it together…I don't think that was close to our best basketball, but we got a pretty good chance. So it's all about looking for some luck and staying healthy."
The 76ers will face the Jazz on Saturday.
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