April 20, 2022
Less than a week ago, Sixers fans would probably be feeling pretty good if they heard a basketball "expert" say their matchup against the Raptors in the first round of the NBA playoffs was just about a coin flip.
After all, Philly has historically had some struggles against their rivals from north of the border, and they didn't exactly stick the landing to end the regular season. Their bench was positively awful, their coach was under the microscope every single night in the interview room and their second superstar was looking like a shadow of his former self.
But 96 minutes of basketball later, things have changed quite a bit.
The Sixers are getting set to face the Raptors in Toronto in Game 3 of this seven game series after two dominating wins that left no doubt as to which was the better team. If the Sixers can do it again Wednesday night, it will simply become a matter of how much rest they can get before likely facing the Heat in Miami.
But before we jump too far ahead, let's take a look at what they're saying around the basketball media world about the impressive 76ers, perhaps a contender for a title once again...
Appearing on ESPN's First Take — transcription courtesy of Sixers Wire — former Sixers JJ Redick expressed quite a bit of shock at the Sixers' recent string of dominance against a team with a pedigree like the Raptors. Here's a slice of his comments — with some love for emerging star Tyrese Maxey:
The amount of set 3s that Philly shooters are getting in this series is mind boggling. Mind boggling! No one within five feet of them and so that’s the adjustment you’re gonna have to make. You’re gonna have to pick a poison, you’re gonna have to be willing to die with that poison, and right now they’re just giving up too much and we brought up Tyrese Maxey. He has emerged in this season, but it’s specifically in these first two games as a legitimate star. He’s a phenomenal basketball player and fun to watch. He does a little bit of everything. Half court, full court, in transition. I love watching him score the basketball. [Sixers Wire]
You can watch the rest here:
Undisputed | Fox Sports
Oh Skip Bayless.
Over on ESPN's rival network Fox Sports, Bayless looked for something negative to say after the Sixers dominated for a second time, and he decided to insult Harden, who has admittedly not been his MVP-caliber self with Philly but has still been a key contributor to the team. I suppose it takes an old man to know an old man?
"James Harden is starting to look old to me. He's becoming an old man right before your very eyes."
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) April 19, 2022
— @RealSkipBayless pic.twitter.com/Tx4VmyLZH6
2022 James Harden hasn't had to be 2018 James Harden and that is because the Sixers are showing they have a lot of different ways they can kill a team. The (should be) MVP Joel Embiid can single-handedly win a game himself, but Tyrese Maxey can also go off for 30+ at any time. And Tobias Harris has consistently been a 20-point scorer this postseason. All of that in addition to Harden, who will eventually have a big game in these playoffs. It's a balanced scoring attack, and one most NBA defenses aren't familiar defending against.
Who will lead the Sixers in scoring in Game 3, Wednesday night in Toronto?
Pick one.
“We can’t worry about who it is,” Rivers said. “We just have to spray the ball out. And I think we’re doing that.”
Balanced scoring is not a revolutionary concept. But Embiid and James Harden have combined to win three of the last four NBA scoring titles. Since both enjoy the status of being a leading scorer, it was Rivers’ job to make sure they complemented – not competed against – one another. While Rivers has encouraged Harden to be more aggressive at the offensive end, the three-time scoring champion has understood that he is surrounded by enough shooters that he doesn’t have to force offense in order to win the one thing his resume lacks: A championship.
“I am just trying to make the right plays, man,” Harden said. “When you’ve got a guys like Tyrese and he has it going, you have to make sure he gets shots.” [Daily Local Times]
In an inspiring piece for Sixers Fans, The Ringer's Devine goes into detail about how the Sixers have been able to completely dismantle Toronto and look like they could be a title contender. But at the end of the article there is a look at how things could still go south, and this is worth reading for fans. There is still a lot of basketball left, and Philadelphia is a team that is not short on weaknesses. Here's a worst case scenario:
That doesn’t necessarily mean trouble won’t find them. The series is about to travel to Toronto; ace Sixer defender Matisse Thybulle, though, won’t. Barnes, such a vital cog in the Raptors machine on both ends of the court, could come back. The Raptors have been resilient under Nurse, bouncing back from 0-2 deficits to get even twice before—when they beat the Bucks in the 2019 conference finals, and when they took the Celtics the distance in the bubble—while the Sixers lost an early-series lead just 10 months ago. If Embiid doesn’t get quite the same whistle, if Nurse can find a schematic way to short-circuit that rolling Philly offense, if Pascal Siakam and VanVleet can power through their massive minutes to improve upon Monday’s 14-for-43 shooting, and if Anunoby (26 points on 10-for-14 shooting) can lighten their creative workload, then the Raptors still may well have a shot at making this a series.
That’s where Philly has left the Raptors, though: awash with “ifs.” The Sixers have so far had the three best players in the series, the more fluid and versatile offense, and, when their main lineups are on the floor, by far the stingier defense. They’re the more talented team and, through two games, the more prepared and poised one, too. They’re straight up outclassing the Raptors—bringing suffocating order to Toronto’s preferred brand of chaos, and pushing a dangerous opponent closer to the dim reality of a disappointingly early offseason. [The Ringer]
Finally, over at The Athletic, their NBA writers picked every game for Wednesday, and all but one of their experts are taking the Sixers — who have a very slim -1.5 point spread for Game 3. Here's a bit more on why so many of their basketball scribes are taking Philly:
Key stat: +16. The Sixers were +16 in free-throw makes in a game they ended up winning by 15. Granted, it was a much bigger lead prior to a meaningless fourth-quarter deficit cut by Toronto, but the Sixers have been dominant in getting to the free-throw line. The Raptors have to play with more force and control if they want to get some of those free throws headed their way.
What can the Sixers do to win Game 3? They have to keep putting pressure on the middle of the court. Do that, and keep attacking closeouts aggressively when the ball swings and the defense scrambles to recover. Things will be tougher on the road, and they won’t have Matisse Thybulle. But playing the same way they have — with a lot of force — will do the trick.
What can the Raptors do to win Game 3? Their activity on defense has been really slow. The more controlled chaos the Raptors create on defense, the more they can throw Philadelphia out of this rhythm. They got a good shooting spurt from Fred VanVleet, but he and Pascal Siakam have to play like All-Stars. The shooting has to endure more than just a quarter. [The Athletic]
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