The Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Dallas Mavericks 109-97 to claim their 14th consecutive win, matching the longest winning streak in franchise history.
The win also ensured that the 76ers (50-30) would finish as one of the top four seeds in the Eastern Conference, guaranteeing the team home court advantage in the first round of the NBA playoffs. That level of success is remarkable just two years after the team went 10-72 in the 2015-16 season.
Philadelphia has won their last six game without All-Star center Joel Embiid, who is missing time with an eye injury. Embiid isn’t expected back until at least the start of the playoffs, and could potentially miss the team’s first round series.
76ers Peaking as Playoffs Begin
Currently, the 76ers are one game ahead of the Cleveland Cavaliers (49-31) for the third position in the Eastern Conference. With only two games remaining in the regular season, the Sixers have an excellent chance to hold on to their No. 3 seed, meaning they would play the Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, or Washington Wizards in the first round.
Philadelphia’s success is the culmination of years of flipping players and draft picks, taking as many chances to sign promising young players to increase their chances of hitting on young superstars they could build their team around. That plan, widely known as “The Process,” appears to be paying dividends now behind Embiid and Rookie of the Year contender Ben Simmons.
Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle praised 76ers’ head coach Brett Brown, who has patiently developed his team while posting only a 125-283 record over his five years in charge of the team.
“He’s just been unshakable as a leader and as a guy that’s always pushed his teams to always play at their highest capacity in terms of energy and effort,” Carlisle told reporters after the game. “And as this thing has gone along, in the fourth or fifth year, they’ve built up the guys that they like and they’ve gotten rid of a lot of other guys that weren’t quite good enough.”
Brown agrees that his team can be a model to others, as long as they have a front office patient enough to wait out some rough years.
“I hope that I represent a real-time example to other owners that can say, ‘Here’s the plan, and we’re really going to adhere to the plan and walk it down and not blink,’” Brown said after the game. “We have fantastic owners that have said something to me and they have delivered.”
Could the Sixers Win It All?
With a streaking team that is hitting its stride right before the playoffs, there’s only one question remaining for the 76ers this season: how much noise can this young team make in the postseason?
While they’re still not considered as one of the primary threats to win the NBA Championship this year, the Sixers are starting to get the gain the attention bettors and bookmakers. At William Hill, the 76ers are the fifth choice to win the title at 25/1.
That’s far behind the Golden State Warriors (6/5) and the Houston Rockets (6/4), the two Western Conference powerhouses who are widely considered the two best teams in the league. Out East, the Cavaliers (15/2) and the Toronto Raptors (15/2) are seen as the best bets to win a title, with the injury plagued Boston Celtics (80/1) having fallen out of the mix.