The Philadelphia 76ers will face the top-seeded Miami Heat in the second round of the NBA Playoffs starting Monday. The Sixers narrowly escaped a 3-0 collapse against the Toronto Raptors with many starting to discuss Doc Rivers' track record of blowing series leads.

Well, Rivers himself fired back at that storyline before Game 6 and according to Kendrick Perkins, Doc has just as much to prove as Joel Embiid and James Harden because of all the negative criticism he's faced over the years. Plus, Perk also believes the Sixers have a legitimate chance if Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry remain injured.

Via Heat Nation:

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“With the injuries the Heat has, I have this series going seven,” Perkins said. “If [Kyle] Lowry and [Jimmy] Butler aren’t 100 percent, the Sixers are going to win this series. I love Philly’s chances. Doc Rivers is angry. He has much to prove as [James] Harden and [Joel] Embiid. An angry Doc Rivers is not someone you want to face right now.”

Of course, Perkins played for Rivers in Boston back in the day, winning a title in 2008. He knows what Doc is all about and is clearly warning the Heat to watch out. The Sixers are definitely going to give Miami a run for their money if they play like Thursday, though. Embiid took over and dominated despite his thumb injury and James Harden looked like the James Harden of the past, getting downhill on a consistent basis and getting hot from deep.

Needless to say, we're expecting a great series.