The Toronto Raptors are on the brink of being eliminated from the NBA playoffs. Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers are up 3-0 on them. If Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby and company can't keep up with Embiid, the Sixers will sweep the Raptors out of the postseason. With Scottie Barnes unlikely to return, Toronto's chances are not very good.

The Raptors coming back to win this first-round series would be a first in the NBA playoffs. Nick Nurse is putting the seemingly impossible feat into a different perspective. If Toronto wins Game 4, which is at home, then the deficit becomes a 3-1 deficit, which has been done before several times.

The obvious factor standing in the Raptors' way is Embiid. The MVP candidate is too good to slow down, let alone stop, and can easily put the Sixers in a winning position even if his teammates shoot poorly from the field.

However, if any team was able to blow a 3-0 series lead in the NBA playoffs, it would be a team led by Doc Rivers. The Sixers head coach has a painfully long history of blowing series leads in the playoffs. His teams have blown a 3-1 lead on three separate occasions (2020 and 2015 with the LA Clippers and 2003 with the Orlando Magic).

With an opponent as good as Embiid opposite of them, Toronto will almost certainly be eliminated. It would take a massive shift in the game plan and several players stepping up to overcome a deficit this big. The Raptors will surely try, though, and perhaps adopt the mindset put forth by Nick Nurse.