Playoffs!?

[Negrodamus]

Shame we didn't close out in game 6. When it comes to the Heat and Nuggets, Embiid usually feasts on Bam Adebayo and Jokic. He also defends Jokic better than anyone in the league. Them the shakes, but this would have been our best shot at a championship; even more so than the Kawhi shot year.

Both 2021 and 2023 we had a great shot if we could just get out of the 2nd round. Alas, this franchise has made an art form of choking...

Agreed, but I do think this board (not talking about you) in particular gets hung up on evaluating the results and come to an overarching conclusion on our players. Yes, Harden played quite bad in the Celtics series aside from 2 games, but it was also a very bad matchup for him. They had three role players with career reputations as good to lockdown defenders (Smart, White, and Brogdon) and also had Jaylen Brown who is a great defender in his own right. Joel is the #1 option, but Harden is the driver that makes the machine go. I’m not absolving Harden in any way, but I do believe playing against Gabe Vincent, Strus, and Martin is a much favorable matchup on offense than the Celtics and he wouldn’t have turned into a pumpkin so readily. And obviously Embiid would have an easier time against Bam and Co than Horford and Robert Williams.

All that to say, yes, you have to show up regardless of opponent, but if we did what we needed to do in game 6, the narrative right now would be how great of a defensive team we are and the Harden/Embiid combo might be the greatest thing ever. Instead were talking about dogs and stars with mental fortitude. Not saying that isn’t a factor to an extent, but I’m not willing to dismiss this team as non-contenders.

[Arsenal]

I agree Saltics was the worst matchup for us, while Heat and Nuggets would be better. But this team is out of excuses. It's just one choke after another. They don't get nor do they deserve any benefit of the doubt whatsoever anymore.

Hopefully the new coach can rectify the overwhelming chokitude around here.

[Negrodamus]

I agree Saltics was the worst matchup for us, while Heat and Nuggets would be better. But this team is out of excuses. It's just one choke after another. They don't get nor do they deserve any benefit of the doubt whatsoever anymore.

Hopefully the new coach can rectify the overwhelming chokitude around here.

True, I’ll just say while we are contenders, we’re not the Warriors who could walk onto any court and be expected win or even slaughter any team. We have some pretty glaring flaws, so mismatches really stand out unfortunately.

[Negrodamus]

They also shouldn’t just quit in game 7. That’s the part where the fan base is most pissed imo. Someone had to go shot for shot with Tatum.

[Ferry Avenue]

They also shouldn’t just quite in game 7. That’s the part where the fan base is most pissed imo. Someone had to go shot for shot with Tatum.

The fanbase is pissed because of what it saw Miami, a team with lesser overall talent than the Sixers, subsequently do to the Celtics. That made the two series appear driven primarily by fortitude -- Miami's in spades, and the lack thereof in the Sixers.

If the Celtics would've cleaned Miami's clock and let them win no more than two games, the Sixers would look like a team with far better mettle.

[sixers hoops]

Shame we didn't close out in game 6. When it comes to the Heat and Nuggets, Embiid usually feasts on Bam Adebayo and Jokic. He also defends Jokic better than anyone in the league. Them the shakes, but this would have been our best shot at a championship; even more so than the Kawhi shot year.

Both 2021 and 2023 we had a great shot if we could just get out of the 2nd round. Alas, this franchise has made an art form of choking...

Agreed, but I do think this board (not talking about you) in particular gets hung up on evaluating the results and come to an overarching conclusion on our players. Yes, Harden played quite bad in the Celtics series aside from 2 games, but it was also a very bad matchup for him. They had three role players with career reputations as good to lockdown defenders (Smart, White, and Brogdon) and also had Jaylen Brown who is a great defender in his own right. Joel is the #1 option, but Harden is the driver that makes the machine go. I’m not absolving Harden in any way, but I do believe playing against Gabe Vincent, Strus, and Martin is a much favorable matchup on offense than the Celtics and he wouldn’t have turned into a pumpkin so readily. And obviously Embiid would have an easier time against Bam and Co than Horford and Robert Williams.

All that to say, yes, you have to show up regardless of opponent, but if we did what we needed to do in game 6, the narrative right now would be how great of a defensive team we are and the Harden/Embiid combo might be the greatest thing ever. Instead were talking about dogs and stars with mental fortitude. Not saying that isn’t a factor to an extent, but I’m not willing to dismiss this team as non-contenders.

Yeah, but it’s hard for me to see them as real contenders when they really haven’t won a tough playoff series in a few decades. Embiid has beaten the Deon Waiters Heat, the D-Lo Nets, Westbrook Wizards, Raptors without Van Vleet, and the 2023 Nets, who made the playoffs due to a bunch of players that are no longer on the team. It was largely Ben and Doc’s fault, but unbelievable that they couldn’t beat that Hawks team in 2021.

I think it’s fair to say that Embiid teams have never beaten a real contending team. And over the last three seasons, the teams we lost to didn’t make it passed the next round, so we are not exactly losing to an unstoppable juggernauts either.

I think we have the talent to be considered contenders. We were objectively a top three team entering the playoffs, but again missing that perimeter player to carry us through the tough stretches for large portions of the series. I think Harden will begin to run into more and more matchups that will cause him problems, and I don’t know if Maxey will be that guy. I think my concern that next season will end the exact same way is likely, unless Nick Nurse somehow schemes a way to avoid the usual pitfalls.

Not trying to be negative, but I strongly feel that another Embiid-Harden led team will end up in the same place regardless of the coach. I’m kind of hoping you can talk me out of it.

[Negrodamus]

They also shouldn’t just quite in game 7. That’s the part where the fan base is most pissed imo. Someone had to go shot for shot with Tatum.

The fanbase is pissed because of what it saw Miami, a team with lesser overall talent than the Sixers, subsequently do to the Celtics. That made the two series appear driven primarily by fortitude -- Miami's in spades, and the lack thereof in the Sixers.

If the Celtics would've cleaned Miami's clock and let them win no more than two games, the Sixers would look like a team with far better mettle.

No, I don’t think that’s what the fan base is mad at. In fact, I think most of the fan base checked out after getting slaughtered in game 7.

[mjkvol]

A huge problem for Miami is that Jimmy is gonna have the ball in his hands & he’s the perfect perimeter guy to play drop coverage against. They don’t really have a great way to continually attack Jokic on defense without Herro. And even then, Herro is not the guy I’d want to make the centerpiece of my offensive strategy in the NBA finals.

Heat had a great run but this is an awful matchup for them. Their small ball lineups get crushed against Denver’s size, they can’t run zone against them, and they don’t have a front line that can even bother Jokic.

True. It seems that Miami's only path to victory is hitting a high % of spammed 3's. They might be able to steal a game, maybe even two, but that isn't sustainable.

[mjkvol]

Both 2021 and 2023 we had a great shot if we could just get out of the 2nd round. Alas, this franchise has made an art form of choking...

Agreed, but I do think this board (not talking about you) in particular gets hung up on evaluating the results and come to an overarching conclusion on our players. Yes, Harden played quite bad in the Celtics series aside from 2 games, but it was also a very bad matchup for him. They had three role players with career reputations as good to lockdown defenders (Smart, White, and Brogdon) and also had Jaylen Brown who is a great defender in his own right. Joel is the #1 option, but Harden is the driver that makes the machine go. I’m not absolving Harden in any way, but I do believe playing against Gabe Vincent, Strus, and Martin is a much favorable matchup on offense than the Celtics and he wouldn’t have turned into a pumpkin so readily. And obviously Embiid would have an easier time against Bam and Co than Horford and Robert Williams.

All that to say, yes, you have to show up regardless of opponent, but if we did what we needed to do in game 6, the narrative right now would be how great of a defensive team we are and the Harden/Embiid combo might be the greatest thing ever. Instead were talking about dogs and stars with mental fortitude. Not saying that isn’t a factor to an extent, but I’m not willing to dismiss this team as non-contenders.

Yeah, but it’s hard for me to see them as real contenders when they really haven’t won a tough playoff series in a few decades. Embiid has beaten the Deon Waiters Heat, the D-Lo Nets, Westbrook Wizards, Raptors without Van Vleet, and the 2023 Nets, who made the playoffs due to a bunch of players that are no longer on the team. It was largely Ben and Doc’s fault, but unbelievable that they couldn’t beat that Hawks team in 2021.

I think it’s fair to say that Embiid teams have never beaten a real contending team. And over the last three seasons, the teams we lost to didn’t make it passed the next round, so we are not exactly losing to an unstoppable juggernauts either.

I think we have the talent to be considered contenders. We were objectively a top three team entering the playoffs, but again missing that perimeter player to carry us through the tough stretches for large portions of the series. I think Harden will begin to run into more and more matchups that will cause him problems, and I don’t know if Maxey will be that guy. I think my concern that next season will end the exact same way is likely, unless Nick Nurse somehow schemes a way to avoid the usual pitfalls.

Not trying to be negative, but I strongly feel that another Embiid-Harden led team will end up in the same place regardless of the coach. I’m kind of hoping you can talk me out of it.

You make excellent points, but I'll reiterate what has been said on here by several of us, and that is how different the narrative would be had we held on to win game 6. We would have been in the ECF with a much more favorable matchup, and all the talk would have been about a potential King Kong-Godzilla finals matchup with Jokic.

This is not to absolve the Sixers even a little, because not showing up for game 7 is inexcusable. It's just to point out the thin line between "wow, we're really title contenders" and "let's tear it down" as far as the narrative. If Rivers was still here, I would have zero hope in a run-it-back scenario, but to me the night and day difference in approach and flexibility on the bench along with some roster tweaking is worth giving Embiid-Harden another run as long as both buy in.

[sixers hoops]

Agreed, but I do think this board (not talking about you) in particular gets hung up on evaluating the results and come to an overarching conclusion on our players. Yes, Harden played quite bad in the Celtics series aside from 2 games, but it was also a very bad matchup for him. They had three role players with career reputations as good to lockdown defenders (Smart, White, and Brogdon) and also had Jaylen Brown who is a great defender in his own right. Joel is the #1 option, but Harden is the driver that makes the machine go. I’m not absolving Harden in any way, but I do believe playing against Gabe Vincent, Strus, and Martin is a much favorable matchup on offense than the Celtics and he wouldn’t have turned into a pumpkin so readily. And obviously Embiid would have an easier time against Bam and Co than Horford and Robert Williams.

All that to say, yes, you have to show up regardless of opponent, but if we did what we needed to do in game 6, the narrative right now would be how great of a defensive team we are and the Harden/Embiid combo might be the greatest thing ever. Instead were talking about dogs and stars with mental fortitude. Not saying that isn’t a factor to an extent, but I’m not willing to dismiss this team as non-contenders.

Yeah, but it’s hard for me to see them as real contenders when they really haven’t won a tough playoff series in a few decades. Embiid has beaten the Deon Waiters Heat, the D-Lo Nets, Westbrook Wizards, Raptors without Van Vleet, and the 2023 Nets, who made the playoffs due to a bunch of players that are no longer on the team. It was largely Ben and Doc’s fault, but unbelievable that they couldn’t beat that Hawks team in 2021.

I think it’s fair to say that Embiid teams have never beaten a real contending team. And over the last three seasons, the teams we lost to didn’t make it passed the next round, so we are not exactly losing to an unstoppable juggernauts either.

I think we have the talent to be considered contenders. We were objectively a top three team entering the playoffs, but again missing that perimeter player to carry us through the tough stretches for large portions of the series. I think Harden will begin to run into more and more matchups that will cause him problems, and I don’t know if Maxey will be that guy. I think my concern that next season will end the exact same way is likely, unless Nick Nurse somehow schemes a way to avoid the usual pitfalls.

Not trying to be negative, but I strongly feel that another Embiid-Harden led team will end up in the same place regardless of the coach. I’m kind of hoping you can talk me out of it.

You make excellent points, but I'll reiterate what has been said on here by several of us, and that is how different the narrative would be had we held on to win game 6. We would have been in the ECF with a much more favorable matchup, and all the talk would have been about a potential King Kong-Godzilla finals matchup with Jokic.

This is not to absolve the Sixers even a little, because not showing up for game 7 is inexcusable. It's just to point out the thin line between "wow, we're really title contenders" and "let's tear it down" as far as the narrative. If Rivers was still here, I would have zero hope in a run-it-back scenario, but to me the night and day difference in approach and flexibility on the bench along with some roster tweaking is worth giving Embiid-Harden another run as long as both buy in.

I always think that if Vince Carter hits his graduation day game winner in 01, Iverson never makes it passed the second round. And if Kawhi doesn’t hit the quadruple bounce, Nick Nurse never gets beyond the second round, so there is really a thin line between success and failure in regards to getting out of round two.

Honestly, if Harden were a few years younger, I’d be plenty optimistic, but I expect he will be about the same in next year’s playoffs. Even against Brooklyn, he had a game with 8 points and 5 turnovers, and another game were he was a -15. And Brooklyn isn’t even a good team. My concern isn’t regarding the Sixers roster. It’s about getting stuck with Harden for more than one more season. Can we be considered a contender? Sure, we are prob one of the five or so best teams in the league. However, at the same time, if we lock into a core of Embiid, an aging Harden, and Maxey, I don’t think we have any real shot at a title.

[Ferry Avenue]

They also shouldn’t just quite in game 7. That’s the part where the fan base is most pissed imo. Someone had to go shot for shot with Tatum.

The fanbase is pissed because of what it saw Miami, a team with lesser overall talent than the Sixers, subsequently do to the Celtics. That made the two series appear driven primarily by fortitude -- Miami's in spades, and the lack thereof in the Sixers.

If the Celtics would've cleaned Miami's clock and let them win no more than two games, the Sixers would look like a team with far better mettle.

No, I don’t think that’s what the fan base is mad at. In fact, I think most of the fan base checked out after getting slaughtered in game 7.

Look back through the posts here at what many people were saying about how the Sixers at the time may have been beaten by the best team in the NBA, and there should be in so many words a moral victory of sorts associated with that. All of that went out the window however after Miami won the first two games in Boston, which was incredibly improbable and precisely what the Sixers could hardly do after winning game 1 there.

At that point nobody harbored any illusions regarding a moral victory, and that was etched even deeper into stone when Miami came home and won game 3, when one would think Boston would be highly motivated to prevail to keep from going down 0-3.

It was what Miami did to Boston that put the Sixers’ season into far sharper relief and made their lack of fortitude unquestionable, thus deflating the fanbase to a far lower point. If Boston wins that series at worst 4-2 and makes a series of it with Denver, people are still running around talking about a Sixers’ moral victory, make no mistake. Now however you won’t hear that out of anybody.

[mjkvol]

Yeah, but it’s hard for me to see them as real contenders when they really haven’t won a tough playoff series in a few decades. Embiid has beaten the Deon Waiters Heat, the D-Lo Nets, Westbrook Wizards, Raptors without Van Vleet, and the 2023 Nets, who made the playoffs due to a bunch of players that are no longer on the team. It was largely Ben and Doc’s fault, but unbelievable that they couldn’t beat that Hawks team in 2021.

I think it’s fair to say that Embiid teams have never beaten a real contending team. And over the last three seasons, the teams we lost to didn’t make it passed the next round, so we are not exactly losing to an unstoppable juggernauts either.

I think we have the talent to be considered contenders. We were objectively a top three team entering the playoffs, but again missing that perimeter player to carry us through the tough stretches for large portions of the series. I think Harden will begin to run into more and more matchups that will cause him problems, and I don’t know if Maxey will be that guy. I think my concern that next season will end the exact same way is likely, unless Nick Nurse somehow schemes a way to avoid the usual pitfalls.

Not trying to be negative, but I strongly feel that another Embiid-Harden led team will end up in the same place regardless of the coach. I’m kind of hoping you can talk me out of it.

You make excellent points, but I'll reiterate what has been said on here by several of us, and that is how different the narrative would be had we held on to win game 6. We would have been in the ECF with a much more favorable matchup, and all the talk would have been about a potential King Kong-Godzilla finals matchup with Jokic.

This is not to absolve the Sixers even a little, because not showing up for game 7 is inexcusable. It's just to point out the thin line between "wow, we're really title contenders" and "let's tear it down" as far as the narrative. If Rivers was still here, I would have zero hope in a run-it-back scenario, but to me the night and day difference in approach and flexibility on the bench along with some roster tweaking is worth giving Embiid-Harden another run as long as both buy in.

I always think that if Vince Carter hits his graduation day game winner in 01, Iverson never makes it passed the second round. And if Kawhi doesn’t hit the quadruple bounce, Nick Nurse never gets beyond the second round, so there is really a thin line between success and failure in regards to getting out of round two.

Honestly, if Harden were a few years younger, I’d be plenty optimistic, but I expect he will be about the same in next year’s playoffs. Even against Brooklyn, he had a game with 8 points and 5 turnovers, and another game were he was a -15. And Brooklyn isn’t even a good team. My concern isn’t regarding the Sixers roster. It’s about getting stuck with Harden for more than one more season. Can we be considered a contender? Sure, we are prob one of the five or so best teams in the league. However, at the same time, if we lock into a core of Embiid, an aging Harden, and Maxey, I don’t think we have any real shot at a title.

Totally agree with regard to locking Harden in, and that's the primary reason I'd love to use 2023 as a reset year to clear the decks. But if Morey intends to make a run this year, I'm not sure there's a better alternative than Harden if he buys in.

[mjkvol]

The fanbase is pissed because of what it saw Miami, a team with lesser overall talent than the Sixers, subsequently do to the Celtics. That made the two series appear driven primarily by fortitude -- Miami's in spades, and the lack thereof in the Sixers.

If the Celtics would've cleaned Miami's clock and let them win no more than two games, the Sixers would look like a team with far better mettle.

No, I don’t think that’s what the fan base is mad at. In fact, I think most of the fan base checked out after getting slaughtered in game 7.

Look back through the posts here at what many people were saying about how the Sixers at the time may have been beaten by the best team in the NBA, and there should be in so many words a moral victory of sorts associated with that. All of that went out the window however after Miami won the first two games in Boston, which was incredibly improbable and precisely what the Sixers could hardly do after winning game 1 there.

At that point nobody harbored any illusions regarding a moral victory, and that was etched even deeper into stone when Miami came home and won game 3, when one would think Boston would be highly motivated to prevail to keep from going down 0-3.

It was what Miami did to Boston that put the Sixers’ season into far sharper relief and made their lack of fortitude unquestionable, thus deflating the fanbase to a far lower point. If Boston wins that series at worst 4-2 and makes a series of it with Denver, people are still running around talking about a Sixers’ moral victory, make no mistake. Now however you won’t hear that out of anybody.

No surprise here, but that's patently false. Once game 7 happened, it wouldn't have mattered if the Celtics had cruised to the championship, in fact it would have made it just that much worse. The Sixers let them off the hook, and Boston was the worst matchup they would have in these playoffs. No one here was saying a damn thing about moral victories, it was only the little people running around in your mind.

[rocketsfan100]

Playoffs Jimmy hasn’t been consistent for a while now. Unless Cody martin erupts like he did against the Celtics the heat will get demoralising humiliation finale

[rzzzzz]

To belabor the obvious, Embiid couldn’t get into the 2nd round without injury. Two of the 3 games we took off of Boston was because Harden went off, which is great when it happens, but can never rely on. Maybe Nurse will show Maxey how to go off. We expect him to deploy Embiid more productively. But getting him through the playoffs healthy? We worried if he’d ever play after we drafted him (or really after he didn’t heal the first time around). Now we never see him finish. Would Sam and his slew of cutting edge doctors and world class training facility have made a difference? Or would it just be Bynum getting the knee injection all over again? Except, it’s not like it’s a chronic condition. Unless you want to say he’s prone to orbital fracture. Yeah, a big heavy guy is hard on his lower extremities. But we’ve seen more variety than deterioration. IDK. (IJDK)

[Sixteen]

Lowry -26 in 11 mins....barf

[Embiid P]

If Miami loses the Finals again, Jimmy Butler would be the perfect disgruntled ringless star to team up with Embiid and Harden to finally get us over the hump.

Oh wait...

[Embiid P]

Wow Miami is the Little Basketball Team That Could I guess.

[Skates]

Big win for the Heat in Denver. Tough place for opposing teams to play and this was the best game to grab that win after being in Denver for an extended time. Miami has been owning fourth quarters throughout the playoffs, especially late third to early fourth quarter stretches.

[Jailblazers7]

Incredible game, gotta feel great if you’re Miami. It feels like Spoelstra is starting to figure some things out against this team.