Post#1727 » by FireMorey » Wed Jun 14, 2023 12:10 am
Why I decided it's best for the Sixers to try to win with Embiid and Harden, barring an unforeseen upgrade that becomes available that no one saw coming.
After the playoffs end, people tend to go into extreme recency bias mode and put way too much into each playoffs. For example, if your team has a great 3 point shooting team all season, but get knocked out in a series where your 3 point shooting struggled, the fan base will be like "Our 3 point shooting sucks and is overrated, we need more shooters!!" when in reality you had one bad series shooting and are just way overemphasizing it because it's the series you remember most recently and sticks in your head the most.
After these playoffs at first I was like the Sixers will never win with Embiid and Harden because they don't have what it takes, but thinking about it more, every player in the NBA looks like they don't have what it takes when you remember them at their worst. And I think fans put too much into this innate "winner or loser mentality" stuff when it's not really that black and white. Everyone is a loser... until they're not. But what about guys who win championships playing below their regular season level? Are they losers? Would Embiid still be a playoff choker if some of his teammates hit a few more shots in game 6? Not to mention he was injured.
I think whenever the playoffs end, fans need something to blame their failures on. Something tangible they can point to and say "See? That's what's wrong with the team! Now let's go out and make it better!" It's probably some innate human thing. We're wired to problem solve and to problem solve there needs to be problems we think we can fix. But aside from needing more talent, which is a given... talent is the one mandatory thing you can't win without, the thing that most decides winning and losing in the playoffs is circumstance.
People don't like to accept that because it's not something you can strategize around fixing. It makes us feel powerless that a big part of winning and losing is something totally out of your team's control. The Raptors don't win a title if Durant doesn't tear his achilles and Klay doesn't blow out his knee.
Take another Philly team... the Eagles. They don't win in 2017 if a ball doesn't bounce of Keanu Neal's knee and land right in Torrey Smith's chest vs Atlanta. Or Foles recovering a fumble on the goal line just in time before a Falcons defender could pounce on it. Or possibly playing Drew Brees and the Saints instead of crappy Case Keenum. Or Graham's strip sack in the Super Bowl bouncing right to Derek Barnett. The Eagles for years never had circumstance fall in their favor and that year they did.
The Sixers have been a hair short several times. Lost in games 7, 6, 7 in the last 3 years. They weren't dominated. They didn't get blown out. Just one small thing going in their favor that didn't could've changed their fortunes. That's sports. People don't want to admit that, but it's true. The Sixers biggest need aside from better players isn't getting "dawgs" who have that "winning gene." It's having things go their way for once. For starters, how about Embiid getting to the 2nd round of the playoffs 100% healthy? Would the Nuggets have won this year if Jokic or Murray played on a torn LCL? Who knows, it' s hard to say and that's the point. We simply don't know how things may have been differently if Embiid had been healthy.
I say the Sixers should keep knocking on the door and maybe one of these years they'll get that answer and have things go their way for once. And if not, oh well. Start Process 2.0 in 5 years and do it all over again. But the Sixers are not far off. And if they keep Harden, they may even be less far off if Nurse can improve them and say the Bucks lose Lopez and the Celtics lose Brown. But even if they don't, one small thing going in their favor could turn the tide.
