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To say the least, the Philadelphia 76ers' season has been interesting. Nobody would have imagined the Sixers would be in this position at the start of the season, but because of the Ben Simmons situation, Philly now has a new roster after the deadline.
While getting rid of Ben Simmons was the right decision for the Sixers, they also lost Andre Drummond and Seth Curry, which might hurt the team in the future.
With James Harden joining the squad, it's impossible to argue that the Sixers aren't a title contender. Harden has a strong chance of leading the Sixers to a championship if he plays his best basketball. It'll all come down to whether or not they can win in the playoffs, which they haven't done in previous years, and whether or not both of their stars, James Harden and Joel Embiid, can stay healthy. Embiid, Harden, and Doc Rivers are all renowned for their postseason failures, so that remains a significant concern for Philadelphia.
If Philadelphia does not win a championship this year with the talent on their roster, everyone should flee the city because there will be all-out mayhem. There's no reason why they can't win an NBA title this season, and if they don't, the Sixers will make even more major changes than they did this year when Ben Simmons was dealt.
Philadelphia must be thrilled with what they got in return for Ben Simmons. Although it's unclear why it took so long for their front office to get a deal done for him, they eventually got what they wanted, and although some of it was luck, the Sixers still got a good deal done; they must be feeling pretty good moving into the second half of the season and the playoffs.
Now that they have James Harden, there are no excuses for them not to win an NBA title this season.
Let's take a look at the three teams who potentially pose the biggest threat to the Sixers in the postseason.
Winning an NBA title is never easy. As we have seen with the past 20 champions, every team is going to need something significant to go their way. Whether that is an unfortunate injury to someone, or having guys on the roster step up more than they ever have. There is a reason why winning a championship is so hard, and a reason why we have seen crazy upsets in the past. If a team is going to win a title, they’re going to need everyone on their roster to be playing the best basketball they possibly can, and even sometimes that isn’t enough to get the job done. Matchups are always something that is going to play a major factor, and some teams just know how to get the job done against certain teams when it matters most.
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The Sixers' top postseason threats
3. Heat
There should really only be three teams competing against the Sixers in the playoffs. Their season-ending defeat against the Atlanta Hawks was unforgivable since Atlanta shouldn't have been on the same court with them. The fact is that if the Sixers are knocked out of the Eastern Conference, one of the Miami Heat, Brooklyn Nets, or Milwaukee Bucks will most likely be the team that eliminates them, but if it's not, that's even more of an issue.
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The Miami Heat are a fun team to watch, and they boast possibly the strongest defense in the NBA in recent memory. It will be difficult for Philadelphia to get anything going on the offensive side of the ball, but when you have a player as good as Joel Embiid, he will go out there and make sure that he gets what is his in terms of scoring.
Given the history of these two teams, this will be a really fascinating series, and it usually seems to become a little chippy when they face one other. Because of how difficult Miami makes it on every opposing team's offense, this isn't a battle Philadelphia wants to see early in the playoffs.
2. Nets
It goes without saying that if this happens, it will most likely be the most bizarre playoff meeting ever. Whatever happens, there is bad blood on both sides, and it will be a highly competitive situation. Whether it was because of Ben Simmons' predicament in Philadelphia, or James Harden's decision to depart the Brooklyn Nets and leave his second team in two years.
There will be craziness everywhere, objects thrown at guys, and it will be a really unappealing series. The sort of things that happen off the court during that series will be incredibly entertaining to watch, but what we will see on the court will be much more entertaining.
No matter how horrible Brooklyn has looked for sections this season without Kevin Durant, he'll be back soon, and when you have a guy like him on your team, you're always going to be a team that finds plenty of success in the playoffs.
1. Bucks
There is some fascinating history between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Philadelphia 76ers. Giannis Antetokounmpo has essentially controlled the 76ers throughout his career, having beaten them much more times than they've beaten him. It'll be interesting to see what kind of playoff series these two teams have, but for now, the Bucks hold the edge.
They have players on the roster who have previously won an NBA championship, and Giannis Antetokounmpo has demonstrated that he can be the best player in the world when the cameras are focused on him the most, something Joel Embiid cannot claim, yet.
