The Philadelphia 76ers pushed the Boston Celtics to the brink of elimination, taking a 3-2 lead after a 115-103 win Tuesday in Boston. If Philadelphia can finish the series at home on Thursday, the franchise will make the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2001.
On Wednesday, ESPN’s JJ Reddick, a former NBA player, ranked Philadelphia second on his list of the league’s biggest title-winning threats:
for every FiveThirtyEightThe Sixers currently have the highest percentage of winning the NBA Finals (32 percent), while according to OddsCheckerthe 76ers are either tied for first or second in betting odds – depending on the sports bet – to win the NBA Finals.
Newly crowned World Player of the Year, Joel Embiid was the catalyst for the 76ers in this series, averaging 32.3 points, 11 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in Games 3 through Game 5 against Boston. James Harden, Therese Maxi and Tobias Harris also stepped up their game during these playoffs, providing Embiid with the support he lacked in previous seasons.
When defending in the playoffs, Embiid has upped its game, providing edge protection like never before. He’s averaging 2.9 blocks this spring—up from 1.7 in the regular season—and has snagged countless other edge shots without ever being officially credited with the outright block.
For his part, Maxi averaged 20.3 points in the qualifiers on 41.4 percent from outside the arc. Harden averages 22.3 points and shoots 42.3 percent from three.
The team’s exceptional three-point shooting was showcased during the playoffs as well.
Aside from Game 2 against Boston and Game 2 against the Brooklyn Nets in the first round, the Sixers have shot over 35 percent from three-point range per game in the postseason so far. Their performance is consistent with regular season shooting from outside the arc (38.7 percent).
Harris is also a regular starter for Philadelphia, averaging 7.7 rebounds – a significant increase from his regular season average of 5.7 boards per game. Overall, this entire menu is done to a high standard at both ends of the floor.
When you hit full roster and your team boasts the league’s Most Valuable Player title, you can develop a strength to win not only a conference title, but an NBA title as well.