The Philadelphia 76ers roster seems readier than ever to make a push for the Eastern Conference crown, taking wins and losses a lot more seriously in 2019-20. According to ESPN's Zach Lowe, holdover players have noticed the change in attitude after recent losses, claiming players are taking Ls to heart — a stark contrast from last season's attitude.
“You would have thought someone's parents died,” said Tobias Harris, who came to Philly prior to last season's trade deadline. “But you know what? That's a good thing. We came so close last year. We're focused now. This is a championship team with championship goals.”
Harris was noting the Sixers' second straight loss, which came at the hands of the Utah Jazz. The Sixers had started the season 5-0 and were the last undefeated time standing before the Phoenix Suns took them out on the road.
The Sixers then suffered a two-point loss to the Jazz and later a three-point loss to the Denver Nuggets, which quickly became a reason for concern after three straight losses.
Since then, the Sixers (9-5) have strolled to a 4-2 stretch and have won two straight to put them in fifth place in the East, though only two games back from the conference-leading Boston Celtics, who lost a close overtime game to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday.
The margin of error will be slim for the top few seeds in the East, and the Sixers are looking to be the No. 1 team in the conference heading into the playoffs and earn a massive homecourt advantage.
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