Riding a franchise-record 20-game winning streak, Philadelphia heads to the Big Apple looking to complete the season sweep of the Knicks.
I don’t know about you, but I, for one, am not tired of all the winning. I know people online are talking about how the rest of this regular season doesn’t mean anything and they just want the playoffs to get here to see this Philadelphia 76ers juggernaut finally try to break through to the Eastern Conference Finals and beyond. But let’s take stock of what we still have to play for with seven games left.
- Can the Sixers break the Lakers’ 33-game winning streak in 1971-72?
I know people have been debating what we should count since the regular season would end before Philadelphia could reach 33 games. Do the playoffs count for the streak? Would it wrap around to next season and only include regular season games? I don’t know! Let’s keep winning and figure it out later.
- Will the Sixers hold off the Oklahoma City Thunder for the best record in the league?
At 64-11, Philadelphia only has a slim lead over the hard-charging Thunder. I realize it wouldn’t mean anything on the court unless both the Sixers and the Thunder reach the Finals, but that seems entirely likely. Plus, I really want the Sixers’ first-round pick heading to Oklahoma City to be 30th overall instead of 29th overall. Add that to your war chest, Sam Presti!
- Will Joel Embiid add a second MVP trophy to his mantle?
Averaging 35.1 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 6.1 assists per game for the best team in the league, Embiid is currently a sizable favorite to come away with his second MVP award. He has stayed healthy and proved the doubters wrong. You know that Joel has no one left to win over when Nuggets fans are praising Joel on social media and Marcus Hayes is writing glowing columns about him. Still, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is putting together an incredible season of his own, and the tides could still turn over these final seven games, particularly if the Thunder were to pass the Sixers in the standings.
Aside from those stakes, this Sixers group is just incredibly fun to watch and I have no problem with there being more regular season games with which to enjoy them. Fellow All-Stars Paul George and Tyrese Maxey have formed the perfect complementary trio around Embiid. George has silenced the injury and age concerns, looking like vintage PG-13 and appearing in 71 of 75 games. Maxey’s numbers have continued to tick up with even better efficiency. He’s a bit shy of it in the field goal percentage this season, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we’re on 50/40/90 watch for him next year. Jared McCain has locked up the Rookie of the Year award with a breakout campaign, and probably would have won Sixth Man of the Year too if the team hadn’t been so healthy and Nick Nurse had been pressed to place him in that role earlier. Guerschon Yabusele continued Daryl Morey’s streak of dynamite late summer signings. Quentin Grimes was an outstanding trade deadline acquisition. Andre Drummond continues to flirt with double-doubles on a nightly basis even while playing only around 15 minutes per game. It’s the whole team!
Plus, isn’t it fun watching the Sixers demolish the Knicks? I want Ben Stiller tweeting about how he wished he had a Severance-like innie who could root for the Sixers instead. The first three wins over New York this season were a blast. The two blowouts were great, obviously, but the win back in February was incredible. Tie game, and Embiid gets switched onto Brunson, blocking his potential game-winner, only for Paul George to hit the three-quarters-court heave as team expired for the win. That’s a moment that will remain in Sixers lore forever. We’re unlikely to approach that magic again tonight (Brunson is injured, for starters), but you never know.
So stop worrying so much about the playoffs. They’ll be here soon enough and we’ll get to dissect and discuss them then. For now, let’s continue enjoying what will probably go down as the greatest Sixers team of our lifetimes.
Happy April Fool’s Day, everyone!
Game Details
When: Tuesday, April 1, 7:30pm ET
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers