It took an extra game, but the Sixers are in the playoffs. They took down the Heat, to clinch the 7-seed. It was not pretty. In fact at times it was incredibly ugly. But a win is a win, and the Sixers emerged victorious.
Up next is the Knicks. They start a 7-game series with New York Saturday Night at Madison Square Garden. Win that, they will be back in familiar territory. The second round of the playoffs. The place they have made it to 5 times in the Joel Embiid era.
First it was the Celtics. A young duo of Embiid and Simmons couldn’t get it done. The next year they fell to the Raptors despite having Jimmy Butler around. They took a year off from the 2nd round for the Bubble year. But after that, they lost to the Hawks in 7 in a series that ended the Ben Simmons era. Then it was the Heat. Most recently, they lost to the Celtics.
This year, if they can beat the Knicks, it would be either the Bucks or the Pacers.
With Embiid, Anything Is Possible
We talk about MVPs. Well, Embiid’s time away from the team may be the best case that he is the league’s Most Valuable Player. When he is on the floor, they are 31-8. Better than any team’s record after 82 games.
Without him, they are 16-27. One of the worst records in the league. Though they did win 3 games in this 8 game-winning streak without him.
They are a team nobody wants to face. With Embiid they have beaten pretty much every good team in the league.
What will the Sixers 15-man roster look like for this playoff run? Who will they be relying on to beat the Knicks, and then for the rest of playoffs?
Here is the Sixers 15-man Roster for the Playoffs:
Tobias Harris
17.1 pts, 6.4 rebs, 3.1 asts, 1 stl, .7 blks, 48.6 fg%, 34.9 3pt%, 87.7 ft%
It feels like Tobias Harris had his worst season yet with the Sixers. But his numbers are all actually up from last year. Is he worth the max contract they gave him? Of course not. And that is the main reason behind many fans ire. He also failed to step up with Embiid out, which only further lends to fans’ frustration.
But he still has value. Not equal value to his contract, but he can help the Sixers. Tobias Harris actually played great defense against Jayson Tatum in the playoffs last year. They are going to need that again at some point. And he still does score 17 points per game.
Then Sixers will be better off when he is off the team and they can use that max contract slot more efficiently. But until his contract is up, he can still help the Sixers.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – APRIL 09: Tobias Harris #12 of the Philadelphia 76ers shoots over Troy Brown Jr. #7, Marcus Sasser #25 and Jalen Duren #0 of the Detroit Pistons during the third quarter at the Wells Fargo Center on April 09, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Paul Reed
7.2 pts, 5.9 rebs, 1.3 asts, .8 stls, 1 blk, 54.1 fg%, 37.5 3pt%, 72.3 ft%
Is Paul Reed good enough to hold down the center position if Embiid is out? No. We saw that this year. The struggles of their bigs is one of the primary reasons the team struggled as much as they did with Embiid out.
But we already know that if Embiid isn’t playing, the Sixers can’t win. The question is if Paul Reed is good enough to be the primary backup in the playoffs. I would say yes. As a guy getting 12-14 minutes per game, he actually brings good energy off the bench. His offensive game has improved enough to fill that small role.
He is a bit undersized, and can still get himself into foul trouble. But that matters less when his role is small.
Nick Nurse has shown he has a quick leash with his backup bigs. If Reed is struggling, he will not hesitate to pull him and go with Mo Bamba. So he gets the backup minutes might differ given the matchup, or even on a nightly basis. But Reed will likely get the first shot.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – MARCH 27: Paul Reed #44 of the Philadelphia 76ers blocks Paul George #13 of the LA Clippers during the second quarter at the Wells Fargo Center on March 27, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Cam Payne
9.2 pts, 1.8 rebs, 3.1 asts, 0.6 asts, 0.3 blks, 41.2 fg%, 38.8 3pt%, 91.3 ft%
There were times when Embiid was out, that Cam Payne saved the team. There are also times when he hurts them. Payne is inconsistent. Right now, he is in a swoon, and he has seen his minutes plummet. Unless that changes, he may not see much time in the playoffs.
But we have seen him make a difference in games. Sixer might not be where they are were it not for him helping them win some games while Embiid was out.
Maybe he gets hot in one game and they give him minutes. Or maybe he barely breaks the rotation, if at all. But they already got what they needed out of him during the season. And they are deep enough otherwise that they don’t need to rely on him in the playoffs like they had to rely on Georges Niang at times in the past two playoff runs.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – APRIL 02: Cameron Payne #22 of the Philadelphia 76ers shoots past Kenrich Williams #34 of the Oklahoma City Thunder during the third quarter at the Wells Fargo Center on April 02, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Robert Covington
4.5 pts, 3.4 rebs, 0.7 asts, 1.3 stls, 0.6 blks, 44.9 fg%, 35.4 3pt%, 97.5 ft%
Covington hasn’t played since December. It has felt at times he was close to coming back, but he never did. It feels unlikely the playoffs will be the time they try to work him back in. Maybe later on, if they go on a run, and are confident he is up to speed. But more thank likely, Covington wont be a major part of their playoff lineup.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – DECEMBER 18: Robert Covington #33 of the Philadelphia 76ers reacts against the Chicago Bulls at the Wells Fargo Center on December 18, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
