The Philadelphia 76ers are on track for the No. 1 or 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, with a small chance of falling to No. 3. As luck would have it, the bottom of the East is a free-for-all of average-to-below average teams who, on paper, have no business challenging the second-place Sixers.
Right now, the conference standings look as such:
- Brooklyn Nets (36-16)
- Philadelphia 76ers (35-16)
- Milwaukee Bucks (32-18)
- Charlotte Hornets (26-24)
- Atlanta Hawks (27-25)
- Miami Heat (26-25)
- Boston Celtics (26-26)
- New York Knicks (25-27)
Let’s rank possible first-round matchups for the Sixers from most desirable to least desirable.
Sixers’ potential first-round matchup #1: New York Knicks
The Knicks have played the Sixers fairly well this season. They’re one of the best defenses in basketball, and Julius Randle was a deserving All-Star. That said, New York’s offense is generally uneven, and the Sixers are better equipped than most to keep them in check. With a healthy Embiid running through a derelict center rotation, the Knicks would stand very little chance.
I simply do not trust a core of Randle, R.J. Barrett, and Derrick Rose to put together enough scoring to challenge the Sixers’ elite defense. New York is thin on shooters, and neither Randle nor Barrett — the undeniable twin cores of that Knicks offense — have much of any experience in the postseason.