The Philadelphia 76ers may have an MVP-caliber player in Joel Embiid, but the upcoming playoffs have grim projections for the Sixers. They are headed into a very tough series against the Toronto Raptors and will not have Matisse Thybulle on away games, as his unvaccinated status restricts him from playing in Canada.
However, the most pressure is going to be on Doc Rivers. After the upset loss to the Atlanta Hawks last season, this year can have no slip-ups. Embiid is the league leader in scoring and has led the team admirably all season. The 76ers also have James Harden on the court alongside Embiid, so the star talent is there in Philadelphia. But can Rivers make it all click together?
He better find a way to do so, because another disappointing playoff run for the 76ers may cost him his job at the team, according to Jamie Apody.
“The Sixers as a whole have the pressure to get deep into the playoffs. They’ve only gotten out of the second round two times since 1986, this would be the second time if they were to do it. That’s a long time… They (Philly fans) are not big fans of Doc Rivers right now. I think Philadelphia 76ers fans see Rivers as getting into the team’s way. Should the Sixers get bounced early, that’s gonna be Rivers’ head for sure.”
Doc Rivers has a lot of recent playoff collapses, including two 3-1 leads that he blew as part of the Clippers, the latter of which got him fired in 2020.
The 76ers will face matchup problems against the extremely switchable forwards of the Toronto Raptors. However, we have seen James Harden and Joel Embiid have unstoppable offensive power sometimes, and Rivers will be tasked with channeling that into wins for a possible run to the Finals.
