Sixers podcast: 76ers own the Celtics | Embiid’s return | Simmons’ ranking

We welcome Jason Blevins from ESPN 97.3 to elaborate on the Sixers’ recent games and other topics. We discuss Embiid’s dominant return, Simmons’ ranking for DPOY, and Daryl Morey’s comment about Philly developing a “championship formula”.

Jason Blevins from ESPN 97.3 joins us this week to discuss all things Sixers related. We jump right into the impressive victory over the Boston Celtics. We break down the performances of the 76ers stars and how the Celtics are a shell of themselves since trading away key players.

After we go over the Boston game, we shift focus to the Memphis loss, where Joel Embiid did not play for load management purposes. As ugly as the game was for Philly fans, there was something positive to come about after a stretch of 10 games that the 76ers were without Embiid.

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Lucas, Jason, and I analyze the 7-3 record the Sixers had while Embiid was rehabbing from his knee injury. We look at who stepped up in the All-Star’s absence and how Doc RIvers was able to keep the team on track and maintain a slight lead in the Eastern Conference ahead of the Brooklyn Nets.

Next, we look at two lists that Ben Simmons made, where he is up for Defensive Player of the Year “DPOY” and top-10 players under 25 years old. Why is he now down to third behind Rudy Gobert and Myles Turner for DPOY? Also, should Simmons be ranked seventh on the list of young stars in the NBA, or should he be higher or lower when compared to others like Devin Booker, Jayson Tatum, and LaMelo Ball?

From there, we look at a recent quote by Daryl Morey, via John Clark of NBCSPhilly. He gave a comment that acknowledged the 76ers’ desire to be the number one defensive team in the league. Furthermore, he said he believed that this status is a “championship formula” as the Sixers strive for home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.

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