The Philadelphia 76ers have started to embark on perhaps the toughest stretch of their 2024-25 schedule yet. With Joel Embiid still battling a foot injury, the 76ers are about to play a back-to-back at home against two title contenders, the Oklahoma City Thunder and New York Knicks.

The Sixers just dropped a road game to the Orlando Magic, 104-99, the first game in a seven-game stretch against teams with winning records. They'll have another multi-game stretch against winning teams to end January and begin February. Even if Embiid is right back in the lineup for the OKC-NY back-to-back that starts on Tuesday, this stretch could make or break Philadelphia's season. Plus, even if Embiid is back for one of those games, he won’t play in the other anyway.

After the Sixers' brutal loss to the Magic, Tyrese Maxey explained what types of issues he expects to get from the Thunder and Knicks.

“They both [propose] a lot of different challenges,” Maxey told reporters. “The Thunder, they are the number one team in the West for a reason. They play everybody tough. We know what Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander] is going to do but they have a lot of depth on their team. We know what the Knicks can do. They are going to play hard, play tough. This will be my first time playing against KAT [Karl Anthony-Towns] so we will see what that challenge presents. They are talented and well-coached.”

76ers face Thunder, Knicks in tough back-to-back

The Thunder, like the Magic, are a spectacular defensive team. In fact, they’re the very best in the NBA by a wide margin. The difference between their defensive rating (102.9, per the NBA website) and the second-place Magic's (106.7) is the same as the difference between the Magic's and the eighth-place Golden State Warriors (110.5). Gilgeous-Alexander ranks third in points per game.

The Knicks, as Maxey said, present a different challenge. They’re one of the best offensive teams in the league, armed with two dangerous scorers in Towns and Jalen Brunson, which propels them to an offensive rating that only the Cleveland Cavaliers exceed. New York is also one of the best rebounding teams in the league.

The good news for the 76ers is that they’ll be home for both games, which are at 7:00 P.M. EST. Both games will be uphill battles and they'll certainly hope Embiid can help them make the trek.