3 observations after Sixers win finale without Embiid, still end up in play-in tournament

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3 observations after Sixers win finale without Embiid, still end up in play-in tournament originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Sixers did their part Sunday afternoon.

However, even with eight consecutive victories, they didn’t get the help required to stay out of the NBA’s play-in tournament.

The Sixers earned a 107-86 win over the Nets at Wells Fargo Center in their regular-season finale. Because the Magic beat the Bucks and the Pacers topped the Hawks, the Sixers still finished seventh in the Eastern Conference at 47-35.

The Sixers will host a play-in tournament game Wednesday vs. the Heat. If they win that, they’ll move on to the playoffs as the East’s seventh seed. If they lose to Miami, the Sixers will face the winner of the Bulls-Hawks play-in matchup in a game to determine the No. 8 seed.

Tyrese Maxey scored 26 points vs. the Nets. Tobias Harris recorded 21 points and eight rebounds.

The Sixers were down Joel Embiid (left knee injury recovery), De’Anthony Melton (back injury recovery), KJ Martin (left great toe contusion) and Robert Covington (left knee bone bruise).

Here are observations on Sixers’ blowout win over Brooklyn to conclude the regular season:

Not much cooking early besides Maxey  

The Sixers didn’t start like a team distracted by all the pertinent action happening elsewhere.

They played active defense, sought out transition opportunities, leaned on Maxey, and scored the day’s first seven points.

Maxey played an especially aggressive first quarter, posting a dozen points on 5-for-9 shooting. However, the Sixers only got 10 points outside of their All-Star guard in the first period. No other Sixer made a three-point shot.

The Sixers also had several transition defense breakdowns, which head coach Nick Nurse identified as a concern going into the game. Noah Clowney drained a corner three with 5.1 seconds left in the first quarter and Brooklyn grabbed its first lead at 23-22.

Big men, bench get the job done 

Mo Bamba started in Embiid’s place. With Allen Iverson sitting courtside two days after his sculpture unveiling at the Sixers’ training complex, Bamba gave a Dikembe…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/3-observations-sixers-win-finale-192501776.html

Author : NBC Sports Philadelphia

Publish date : 2024-04-14 19:25:01

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