On March 21, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continued. The Philadelphia 76ers have lost again, Harden and Embiid are sluggish, and as the playoff days get closer, there's really not much time left for the 76ers. Can the championship team formed in the middle of the road complete the task of winning the championship ahead of schedule? Judging from the current situation, it is still not optimistic.
Harden's ability to play hard battles needs to be improved, Embiid is not experienced enough in the playoffs, and Rivers has been named the "King of Reversals". How easy is it for such a team to win the championship? Just today, coach Rivers made it clear that we had too few points off the bench, which was a serious drag. However, a team that wants to win the championship requires not only hard power, but sometimes a little skill, such as how to choose a playoff opponent. Avoid the Nets in the first round, hide the Bucks in the second round! With the 76ers or strategically abandoning the top 3 positions, Harden looks ahead to the Eastern Conference Finals.
First round to avoid the Nets
As of now, the Nets are ranked 8th in the East. Not surprisingly, the Nets and raptors will compete for the 7th place in the East in the playoffs. With Durant's explosive scoring power, in a game that is set to win, the Nets will most likely beat the Raptors and advance to the playoffs in the 7th position. So the Nets' first-round opponent is the Second-place team in the East.
After losing to the Raptors, the Philadelphia 76ers fell from 2nd to 3rd in the East. Judging from the difficulty of the next schedule, the 76ers do not need to return to the second place, let the emperor take a few more rounds off, and maintain the best physical condition to prepare for the playoffs. The Bucks are in good form, and with the return of Lopez, the defending champion is too powerful, and it is very likely to maintain the 2nd position, and even the possibility of sprinting to the first place in the East. As a result, the 76ers could perfectly avoid the Nets in the first round. Many media and NBA commentators believe that a healthy Nets will be a nightmare for all teams!
In the last game where the 76ers played against the Nets at home, the new OK combination of Harden + Embiid actually lost 28 points. It can be seen that the real strength of the Nets is terrible, but the injury makes them look weak.
Dodge the Bucks in the second round
Another interesting phenomenon is that the 4th-placed Green Team in the East has achieved an impressive record of 8 wins and 2 losses in the last 10 games, which is equal to the 76ers. According to this situation, the green team is expected to surpass the 76ers and become the third place in the East. In fact, the 76ers are no. 4 in the East, which is also a good thing, because the second round can perfectly avoid the Bucks.
The Bucks are the most underrated, who could have imagined last season that they would have the last laugh and that Alphabet Brother would lift the championship trophy? Although the return of Lopez the Great, the team has added defensive players such as Ibaka, Bemburi, and Jerwan Carter, and the strength has increased unabated. The 76ers' bench is much worse than the Bucks, and by the time it comes to playoff games, that disadvantage will be amplified infinitely. As a result, the 76ers can choose to continue their decline, with 4th in the East being the most perfect ranking.
Strategically abandon the top 3 positions
At the end of each year's regular season, teams in the playoffs make that choice, and for the 76ers, it's a must-do job, after all, it's not the strongest in the East. Once the 76ers are no. 4 or 5th in the East, the first-round opponent will be the Bulls or the Greens. Compared with these two teams, the advantage of the 76ers is still relatively obvious, Harden will fully release his scoring ability, and the emperor will do whatever he wants on the inside.
The 76ers emerged from the first round of the series, and the second round will face the winner of the Heat and Raptors, most likely the Miami Heat. The big three of Butler, Adebayo and Lowry are significantly weaker than Alphabet Brother, Holliday and Middleton. The combination of Harden + Embiid + Harris + Maxi is not weaker than the Heat, and the 76ers are expected to stand out once again and reach the Eastern Conference Finals. Even if it didn't end up breaking out of the East, this season has been a success.
With the 76ers giving up the top three, Harden is expected to look ahead to the Eastern Conference Finals and catch up with the success of the Iverson era. The 76ers' roster is still obviously flawed, and due to the hasty arrival of the Harden deal, the team has no time to strengthen. In a recent interview, Harden made it clear that he was willing to stay in Philadelphia for a long time, where he had the best chance of winning the championship. Next season may be the 76ers' biggest chance to win the championship, with targeted reinforcements this summer.