NEW YORK – The Boston Celtics beat Philadelphia 123-101 to replace the 76ers at the top of the NBA Eastern Conference, as Jayson Tatum outshone his former teammate Jaylen Brown in a much-hyped showdown on Nov 10.

Brown’s first regular-season clash against the Celtics team he called home for a decade played out against reports of a beef with his 2024 NBA title-winning partner Tatum.

The two men have exchanged cryptic public barbs, apparently disagreeing over Tatum’s knowledge of – or role in – Brown’s shock trade this summer to the Sixers.

Tatum greeted Brown moments before tip-off but was seemingly blanked, and the game began in feisty fashion, with a fired-up Brown making two steals but conceding two fouls in the opening minutes.

But Brown was ultimately restricted to just 13 points on a frustrating night, against Tatum’s 21, as Boston weathered a Philadelphia third-quarter comeback and rode to victory.

“No game is bigger than the other, definitely in the regular season, you know – it’s one game,” said Tatum.

“The hoopla is over, and now we get all ready for tomorrow.”

The Celtics took an early lead, even as the Philadelphia crowd booed Tatum’s every move, jeering loudly as he wildly misplaced a pass under pressure from VJ Edgecombe.

But as the game settled into its rhythm it was veteran Paul George – who went the other direction, from Philadelphia to Boston, as part of the Brown package – who dominated.

George racked up 36 points across the night, on superb shooting form including six three-pointers from 11 attempts.

In the third quarter, Tatum soared above LeBron James for a driving dunk.

But Philadelphia rallied, levelling the score at 76-76 and again at 79-79 with a monster Maxey three-pointer.

Boston regrouped and raced out of sight down the final stretch, with George paying credit to Tatum for soaking up the opposition’s focus, leaving him free to score.

“Obviously JT demands so much attention. Playing off him has allowed me to get a lot of easy opportunities,” he said.

“At this point in my career, there’s only one thing that I want to do, and that’s win. And so, for him, especially for JT, (my role is) to alleviate any pressure, any friction.

“I’m here to help you. I’m in a way here to serve you, make you become the best player that you can become.”

The battle of the top two teams in the East saw Boston move to 9-2 with a fourth straight win, with Philadelphia now 9-3.

Also in the NBA on Nov 10, the defending champions New York Knicks thrashed the struggling Milwaukee Bucks 117-85.

Jalen Brunson scored 23 and Karl-Anthony Towns continued his fine form with 21 points plus 16 rebounds.

The Bucks slumped to 1-10, having lost their former star man Giannis Antetokounmpo this summer.

The Celtics had initially attempted to trade Brown for Antetokounmpo, kick-starting the saga, before Antetokounmpo ultimately moved to the Miami Heat and Brown ended up at Philadelphia. AFP