Philadelphia 76ers hold Steady in this Weeks Power Rankings
This week has been pretty good to Philadelphia fans in relation to basketball. Since the last power rankings, the Philadelphia 76ers have faced the Boston Celtics, New Orleans Pelicans, and the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Sixers walked out of this week 2-1 with wins over the Celtics and Thunder, and now currently sit at a record of 36-17 before our Monday night matchup with the Dallas Mavericks.
The 76ers two wins this week were very good games. They beat the Boston Celtics 106-96, and the Thunder 117-93. Unfortunately, the 76ers did not come to play against the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night. Joel Embiid posted only 14 points on 5-16 shooting (31.2%) and Ben Simmons had 10 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists but a horrific 6 turnovers. Tobias Harris seemed to be the only one who wanted to play and posted a 23 point game on 7-16 (43.8%) shooting. This loss did not help the Sixers chances of moving up the standings as it should have been an easy game for us.
ESPN
Current Ranking: 4
Previous Ranking: 3
The Phoenix Suns were the team that bounced the Sixers out of the top 3, but it is understandable since they went 3-1 and only lost in a close game with the Clippers. Had the Sixers gone 3-0 this week I believe they would have been able to hold onto the 3rd spot in this ranking.
The Athletic
Current Ranking: 6
Previous Ranking: 7
The Athletic feels as if the return of Joel Embiid and the impressive win over the Celtics was enough to bump them up a spot. They mention the offensive and defensive ratings when Joel is on and off the floor while being replaced by Dwight Howard. With Joel on the floor, they have a 119.7 offensive rating and a 105.2 defensive rating. With Joel off the floor, they have an offensive rating of 94.3 and a defensive rating of 132.4. This is an awful stat for the Sixers but shows how important Joel is to this team.
Bleacher Report
Current Ranking: 6
Previous Ranking: 6
BR leaves us at the same ranking they had us as last week, once again noting the fact that Joel has returned but unfortunately losing in a disappointing game against the Pelicans. BR mentions that Joel returning is huge, but he is not back at full form as he shot just 10% from three this week. They also mention how the loss at New Orleans can cost us a real shot at securing the 1 seed. Had the 76ers swept this week, it is a chance BR also would have moved us up.
This next week is going to be extremely difficult for the Sixers. We see them engage in another tough stretch facing the Mavericks at their stadium, and the Nets and Clippers at home. This could be the week the Sixers take a big leap in rankings or take a fall. The Sixers need to do everything in their power to walk away from this week 2-1 at the least. If they fail to win 2 games or at least beat Brooklyn, the 1st seed chances will be slipping out of further reach.