NBA Notes: Celtics, Anfernee Simons, Sixers, Jared McCain, Raptors

Celtics

Anfernee Simons is making the most of his minutes, and Boston isn’t complaining.

The Celtics guard has stacked back-to-back 23-point nights, a notable bump after a stretch where his playing time swung wildly from twelve to thirty-three minutes.

As Brian Robb of MassLive wrote, the key has simply been opportunity.

Simons said he’s gone back to keeping things simple.

“In previous years, that was kind of my thing — ease into the game and see how they guarded me,” he said. “Here, I don’t have that much time to ease in.

“So taking the opportunities as they are, being myself, being aggressive, and making the right plays.”

With a $27.7 million expiring deal, Simons remains one of the league’s most interesting trade chips. And he’s helping his case every night.

76ers

Jared McCain is finally starting to look like Jared McCain again.

The Sixers rookie posted a season-high 15 points in 26 minutes during Sunday’s loss to Miami as he continues to shake off the rust from the thumb injury he suffered in camp.

His first NBA season was interrupted by a knee issue, and he admitted he’s still finding his rhythm.

“It definitely felt the best,” McCain told Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “Each game is just getting more reps on the knee and more reps of movement.

“I felt really good. Felt like I got a little burst on my first step. Just building off each game.”

Philly could use his scoring pop as Joel Embiid works his way back from knee soreness.

Raptors

Toronto sits at 11-5 (through Sunday) and owns the second-best record in the East.

But is this hot start real? Eric Koreen of The Athletic isn’t ready to crown anything just yet.

The Raptors have been sharp and deep, but they’ve faced only two teams from the league’s true upper tier (Detroit, Oklahoma City, Denver, the Lakers, San Antonio and Houston), and they lost both convincingly.

Basically, there’s plenty to like, but the real tests are still to come.