(Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
The Sixers five game winning streak couldn’t have come at a better time. They’ve been able to overtake the Pacers for the third seed. And, while doing so, have built a three-game lead over the Pacers and the Celtics. Locking up the third seed has been of the utmost importance to the Sixers. The third seed would assure avoiding the Celtics or Pacers in the first round. This would theoretically, give them an easier first round matchup against either the Pistons or Nets. It also limits the odds of running into the Celtics come playoff time. However, let’s say they do run into the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. That’s what makes tonight’s game so important.
I proclaimed the last Sixers-Celtics game a must win for the Sixers. They came up short at the end of the game and lost. Let’s see if Brett Brown learned from the mistakes of that loss. Specifically, late in the game. He ran JJ Redick and TJ McConnell out there late. The Celtics found those mismatches and abused it until they closed out the win. Brown is not going to be able close the game out with Redick. He’s going to have to have Ennis out there due to his size and defense late in the game. They’ll be able to switch everything and the Celtics won’t be able to exploit that mismatch.
At the end of the day, the psyche of this team will take a hit if they don’t win this game tonight. They need to go into the playoffs on a high note with a win vs the Celtics under their belt. Unless there’s a colossal collapse, a win tonight and the Sixers all but wrap up the third seed for good. It’s going to be tough, having just played the Hornets last night. The Hornets played them very tough and the starters saw few breaks. Back to backs in the NBA are never easy. However, Embiid had the night off last night, he’s rested and ready to go. It’ll be up to Embiid to step up and bring it home for the Sixers. I think the big guy has what it takes. Expect Embiid to lift the team and lead them to victory.
