Philadelphia 76ers are “designed for the playoffs” and can compete with anybody

By Devin Dunleavy | Dec 27, 2019

Tobias Harris, Ben Simmons | Philadelphia 76ers (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images) /

The Philadelphia 76ers continue to prove that they are built for playoff success coming off a statement win against the Milwaukee Bucks on Christmas Day.

After dismantling the Eastern Conference-leading Milwaukee Bucks on Christmas and stifling the reigning league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown described the team as being “designed for the playoffs”, and it is starting to look more and more like he is correct in thinking that.

The 76ers have been dominant in spurts this season, but occasional lapses in effort and focus have cost them some very winnable games. One thing remains true through the first quarter of the season, and that is this — in big moments against good team, the Sixers come ready to play, and that was never more evident than it was on Wednesday afternoon.

In one of the first big tests of the season, the 76ers dominated the Bucks and did what many teams have been unable to do this year, slow down or stop Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Sixers showed the rest of the league what they were really capable of on defense, using their absurd length and athleticism to swallow up the Bucks scorers and hold the MVP to just 18 points on 8-27 shooting and 0-7 from three-point range.

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Whether it was Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, or Al Horford guarding Giannis, the Sixers defense made it extremely difficult for the Greak Freak all afternoon. It is clear that general manager Elton Brand had Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks in mind when putting together the insanely big, defense-first roster that the Sixers came into the season with.

The Sixers star players rose to the occasion and played some of their best games of the season respectively. Joel Embiid denied Giannis at the rim all day, posted 31 points and 11 rebounds, and was simply dominant. Ben Simmons was aggressive in pushing the pace and distributing, tallying up another huge assists total with 14 to go along with his 15 points. Tobias Harris continues to grow as the teams most reliable scorer and racked up 22 points of his own.

It is clear that the Sixers ramp up the intensity on both ends of the floor when playing against the league’s best teams. With the Sixers’ talent and size, playing with this level of effort and activity defensively makes them one of the hardest teams to score on in the NBA — and this will make them one of the toughest outs come playoff time — as head coach Brett Brown alluded to.

Although it would be nice to see the 76ers play at this level more consistently, the important thing is that they are bringing it when it matters most. The Sixers are one of the best teams in the NBA against contending teams, posting a 6-2 record against the top six teams in the Eastern Conference. They know they can compete with anybody, so now it’s just a matter of staying healthy and continuing to rack up wins to get as high of a seed as possible for the playoffs.

Joel Embiid echoed this sentiment after the game on Wednesday, saying:

"“My goal is to get to the playoffs healthy. If my team needs me, then I’m going to show up. I feel like a lot of people have forgotten who I am. When I’m needed, I’m going to show up. God willing and hopefully I’m healthy for the playoffs, it’s going to be a different story.”"

Joel understanding that his health is the main priority is extremely important. Although we would all love to see him dominate night in and night out consistently, it is key that he knows his body and understands that the most important thing is getting himself into the playoffs as healthy and focused as possible.

We saw first-hand last season how beneficial it is for some players to pace themselves throughout the regular season as we watched a well-rested Kawhi Leonard steamroll through the Eastern Conference — although those four bounces helped him out a bit too.

Joel Embiid felt the opposite, as a long season began wearing on him in the playoffs and he struggled to stay healthy. This year Joel is clearly focused on getting to the playoffs healthy and playing his best basketball once he gets there.

All of this is to say that this 76ers team has one goal and that is to win a championship — and from this roster’s conception they have been a team that is built to succeed in the postseason. They are a defensive juggernaut when playing with the appropriate effort, and they have proved that in all of their wins over contending teams this season.

The Philadelphia 76ers play a tough, physical, defensive-minded brand of basketball that will help them immensely when offenses slow down come playoff time. They have continued to prove that they can match up with the best teams in the NBA.

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With the starting five that they have assembled — including a healthy and focused Joel Embiid going into the playoffs, I would take my chances with the Sixers going up against any team in the league.