The Sixers' playoff ghosts get their plane tickets for Cancun

PLUS: Nikola Jokic remains a marvel.

Good morning. Let’s basketball.

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Boston Celtics fans started leaving Game 5 midway through the fourth quarter, and the playoff ghosts of the Philadelphia 76ers’ past just might follow close behind. In an incredible turn of events, after going 2-2 in the series set-up, the Sixers walked into the Garden and blew the defending East champs off the floor.

Joel Embiid was a two-way masterpiece.

33 points with three threes and 10 made free throws, plus four blocks. He had a few rejections in the fourth that felt like back breakers for Boston, who struggled mightily from deep and tried to find lanes to the cup to make up for it. When they did, Embiid was often there to close the door just in time. It looked like irrepressible force of will when it was really very high talent and skill level and tremendous self belief. Embiid isn’t at all shadowed by the moment.

Neither is James Harden. No gaudy numbers for The Beard in Game 5, but he performed exactly how the Sixers needed with Tyrese Maxey popping. Harden played the set-up man and fed Embiid much of the night, finishing with 17-8-10 and two steals with just two turnovers. He’s competing hard on defense. He looks ready to help lead this team back to the conference finals as a co-star.

Think about it: Harden’s a three-time scoring champ, a former MVP, a 10-time All-Star, a member of the NBA 75, a surefire first ballot Hall of Famer. He has two game winners and two 40-plus performances in the four games of the series so far. And in Game 5, his MVP co-star and his younger backcourt mate had it going, so he only took eight field goal attempts. (He got to the line a bunch, too.) That’s a pretty amazing face turn for a player who has been (fairly) tagged as centered on himself in the past.