FanPost

Racing to the Finish - Two Steps at a Time



The Sixers are racing to the finish line with the possible clinching of a playoff spot in the immediate future. They are in a tense battle for playoff seeding and home court advantage in the first round, and have won five in a row. But these five wins have all been against lottery bound train wrecks - and the Sixers have lost their last three games against potential Eastern Conference playoff opponents. Not since the win on the Cavs home floor on March 1st have they taken the measure of a playoff bound opponent.

The rotation has started to come together with regular contributions coming from the bench, and the last two wins were blow outs. But the next two at home are very important - not just to the standings - but because of the opponents - the Timberwolves and the Nuggets, 7th and 9th respectively in the Western Conference, and both at home. They are important measures of our readiness for the playoffs.

The Wolves tonight represent precisely the kind of challenge the Sixers need to face and overcome right now. A stud in the middle in Towns to offset Embiid's production. A savvy hard as nails veteran at PF in Gibson to test Dario. A three point shooter in Bjelica to occupy one of our wings. Another athletic wing in Wiggins playing currently at SG with size and sometimes shooting to test the defense. Does Covington take on Wiggins leaving Redick at a size disadvantage on Bjelica, or does Redick try to combat Wiggins athletic ability instead - these are the exact types of issues the Sixers will face come the playoffs.

A playoff tested PG in Teague for Simmons to battle, and a very quick backup PG in Jones that is exactly the type of matchup that our bench has sometimes struggled with. An even bigger weapon off the bench in Crawford, capable of a lot of instant offense, and a challenge for either Belinelli or Redick to deal with. Another banger off the bench in Dieng to test Ilyasova.

So all in all precisely the types of match up issues that the Sixers will be facing in the playoffs. But we are at home, and the Wolves are on the second night of a road back to back, We need to come ready to play with pace to challenge the Wolves legs on the Segababa and their coach's well known propensity to use a short bench. The Knicks helped us out last night by losing but keeping it close, and all of Minnesota's starters played at least 38 minutes except Teague who ran 34. Towns played 41 minutes last night, Gibson 39, Wiggins and Bjelica 38 apiece. Crawford 25 off the bench, Jones 14, and Dieng 12. That's it - 8 men in total, and heavy dependence on the starters and Crawford.

We also need to come ready to keep them off the offensive glass, where Towns and Gibson, and also Wiggins are threats. We need to spread them out and challenge one of their weaknesses - underwhelming perimeter defense - and move the ball and make shots from deep. Embiid needs to come to work in the post and try to get Towns in foul trouble and then he and Simmons can feast on Cole Aldrich and attack the rim. We need to show a lot of energy and wear them down, and take care of business.

The Nuggets on the other hand will come in on Monday on a road trip but well rested - having not played in three days - they beat the Wizards in Washington last night continuing their fight for the playoffs, where they remain a game back of the Jazz for the final spot in the west. Like the Wolves their coach has tightened the rotation down the stretch, also having played 8 last night, including the recently returned veteran Paul Milsap, who is not yet consistently himself, putting up just points and 1 board in 25 minutes as a starter, though he did notch 5 assists. Still the former all-star should not be overlooked - when healthy he can be a real problem - three nights ago he put up 22/8 against the Bulls. A bigger problem still is Jokic, a very skilled offensive Center who is capable of shooting the 3 and drawing Embiid away from the paint, and also a tremendous distributor out of the high post. Wilson Chandler and Will Baron are both hot and cold scorers and both athletes for our wings to try and handle. And Murray is a real scorer at the PG spot that will test Simmons defense.

Off the bench the Nuggets bring our old friend Devin Harris at the point, one of the Plumlee boys for some physicality up front, and journeyman Torrey Craig at SG. They also have Trey Lyles, Darrell Arthur, and Ken Faried when they go deeper into the bench, though again, none of the latter three got any run last night, though all three got some good minutes in the blowout win against the Bulls.

Both the Wolves and Nuggets are fighting for their playoff lives, and both have won 2 in a row, though both are also just 5-5 in their last 10. Both have potent offenses but give up a lot of points in return. Neither is strong on the road overall, as we sometimes bemoan the Sixers 18-19 road mark we can take some solace in the Wolves 15-22 mark and the Nuggets 13-23 - neither would be seen as road warrior juggernauts. So they can be beaten, but will represent real tests to our winning streak, and to our fight for playoff seeding and home court advantage. But for the next couple games we do have that advantage, and if the Sixers want to earn home court in the first round, then it is in games like these - on the home court down the stretch of the regular season against legitimate foes - that we can earn home court in the playoffs.

Trust the Process

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