This day in Celtics history: PJ Dozier signs two-way deal, Boston sweeps 76ers in the bubble
On this date, PJ Dozier joined the Celtics on a two-way deal, and two years later Boston swept Philadelphia in the 2020 NBA bubble playoffs.
Two Celtics milestones, one calendar date
Boston's history books have a habit of stacking storylines on the same day, and this one is no exception. Back in 2018, a little-known guard named PJ Dozier signed his first NBA deal with the Celtics — a modest two-way contract that opened the door to a pro career. Two years later, on the same date in 2020, Boston delivered a statement win over the Philadelphia 76ers deep inside the NBA's Orlando bubble. Different scale, same franchise, same day on the calendar.
From undrafted South Carolina product to Celtics two-way signing
Dozier's path to the NBA was anything but a straight line. A hometown product of Columbia, South Carolina, he played college ball at the University of South Carolina before going completely unselected in the 2017 NBA Draft. Rather than fade away, he took the long route: a Summer League stint with the Los Angeles Lakers, followed by short-term looks with the Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder during the 2017-18 season.
That grind eventually paid off when the Celtics gave him a chance, signing Dozier to a one-season two-way contract in 2018 — the kind of deal that lets a team split a player's time between the NBA roster and its G League affiliate.
A breakout year with the Maine Red Claws
While bouncing between Boston and its developmental affiliate, Dozier made real noise. He earned a spot on the All-NBA G League team while suiting up for the Maine Red Claws (now rebranded as the Maine Celtics) — essentially the G League's version of an All-Star nod, and proof that his game was translating even if minutes at the NBA level were scarce.
Despite the developmental success, Boston opted not to extend his contract once the season wrapped, sending Dozier back into free agency.
Where Dozier landed next
Dozier's next stop was the Denver Nuggets, the franchise he was still playing for at the time this piece was written. Across his career to that point, he was averaging 3.2 points and 2.8 rebounds per game — modest numbers, but a legitimate NBA foothold for a player nobody drafted just a few years earlier. His story is a reminder of how many current NBA rotation pieces started out on two-way deals and G League call-ups rather than lottery picks.
The other anniversary: Boston's bubble beatdown of Philly
The same date also marks Boston's 102-94 Game 3 win over the 76ers in the first round of the 2020 NBA Playoffs, played at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex outside Orlando during the league's pandemic-era bubble. Kemba Walker led the Celtics with 24 points and 8 rebounds, with Jaylen Brown adding 21 points and 7 boards of his own.
On the other side, Joel Embiid put up a monster stat line — 30 points and 13 rebounds — but no other Sixer reached 20 points, and Philadelphia couldn't keep pace. "I don't want to be swept," Embiid said at the time, per the Associated Press. "I don't want that in my resume. I'll be playing my butt off. I'm going to come in and do everything that I can to make sure we win a game." Despite the effort, the Sixers were swept out of the bubble.
Why this double anniversary still matters
Neither of these moments made national headlines when they happened, but together they say a lot about how Celtics history gets built — one unheralded two-way signing and one bubble sweep at a time.
Next time you see a two-way contract announcement scroll by without much fanfare, remember: that's exactly how careers like Dozier's get started.