The Philadelphia 76ers had a rough week of basketball with two losses but ended the week with a win. After losing to two of the East’s best, the Sixers play four games, including three West teams, in an attempt to stay out of the play-in. They are currently still the five seed with a record of 34-25, just one game ahead of the eight seed.
Rough Week for the 76ers
Earlier this week, the 76ers hosted the Milwaukee Bucks on national television but came out on the losing end following a disappointing first quarter. Just two days later, Philadelphia traveled to Boston to face the Celtics. After a highly competitive first half, the Sixers fell off in the second and lost 117-99. Tyrese Maxey posted 32 points, and a bench trio of Cameron Payne, Ricky Council IV, and Mohamed Bamba added 10 or more points as well. On Friday night, however, the 76ers bounced back with a 121-114 win against the Charlotte Hornets. Maxey scored 33 points, and Tobias Harris poured in 31 points and 12 rebounds in an outstanding effort. This week was overall disappointing in the win column, but there were some bright spots with Maxey’s consistency and the bench’s performances.
Pulling Away From the Play-In
The 76ers need to pull away from the Play-In Tournament and hope that Joel Embiid can return for the team to be legitimate championship contenders. With about six weeks remaining, each game is crucial in the tightly packed Eastern Conference. The Sixers will first play the Dallas Mavericks in another nationally televised game on a Sunday afternoon. On Tuesday night, they will play the Brooklyn Nets on the road and head home to host the Memphis Grizzlies the next day. Finally, Philadelphia will face the New Orleans Pelicans at home on Friday night. Against some Western playoff contenders, this week is far from easy for the Sixers, especially without Embiid. However, Nick Nurse and his squad will need to pull out a couple of wins this week to continue their playoff push.
