Before the NBA hit the pause button in the mid-March season, the Philadelphia 76ers were the league’s most inconsistent team. No other franchise had a greater disparity between the way he played at home and on the go. The Sixers were the top 29-2 in the league within the friendly boundaries of the Wells Fargo Center, but had a sad 10-24 record in away games.
At home, they have made impressive wins over Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers and Milwaukee Bucks. On the road, however, the 76ers suffered embarrassing losses for the humble Atlanta Hawks and Washington Wizards. At 39-26 years old, Philly is currently in sixth place in the Eastern Conference ranking – behind Bucks, Raptors, Celtics, Heat and Pacers – after many had expected them to compete for the best seed before the start of the season.
Many of the Sixers’ problems with inconsistency were due to injury, as they were without three different appetizers – Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Josh Richardson – for long periods of time. However, some of the team’s struggles were due to chemistry, or lack thereof, according to striker Tobias Harris. During a recent appearance on ESPN’s “First Take”, Harris admitted that the Sixers have struggled with cohesion throughout the season and have acknowledged that they have failed to meet the high expectations they have been given.
“I’ll just say, and I’ll keep it real, we haven’t had the best chemistry all year long,” said Harris, via NBC Sports Philadelphia. “It took some time to bring everyone together, we fought the injuries from start to finish. And right now, if we are the sleeper, then we are the sleeper. To tell the truth, as we have seen, this is the someone else’s opinion, but I know when I look my kids in the eyes and we have conversations, we have a goal in mind, and to go out and play and win a championship.
“This is the only vision that matters to me. What people have to say about our team, I understand, because this year we have not met our expectations. But in Orlando we have a new opportunity to go out and play ball and really scratching a new surface of what we can accomplish. ”
Despite their swinging season, Harris remains confident that the Sixers will be able to take the title when the season resumes in Orlando in late July.
“I’ve always been in touch with all my teammates during this process,” said Harris. “Mainly just to make sure the kids are mentally in a good space, asking, ‘Hey, do you want to go for a ride here? What’s your opinion?’ Actually not judging much … I think when we go out for a ride, we will have the chance to win a championship. We will be healthy, much healthier than before – having Ben recovered and fully recovering is great for us – and we just have to go out there and play basketball.
“This is a bit like an AAU tournament for us. We just have to go out there and play, do our best and do what we do. But I really believe we will have a clear shot to win a championship, and I believe it.”
Considering the injury problems they faced and the fact that 40 percent of the initial lineup was new, some fights were expected for the Sixers. However, given the talent on the team – and the payroll – it’s fair to say that they underperformed during the first part of the season. In Orlando, however, they will have a new beginning and a new opportunity to test themselves. Over the course of the season, the Sixers have shown their roof with some important wins – like for the Bucks on Christmas day, or their 17-point victory over the Lakers in January – and that roof is extremely high.
On any given night, the Sixers can compete with – and defeat – any team in the league. Consistency will be the key to them in Orlando. If they can consistently put together solid performance, they could potentially make a quantum leap. Thanks to the advantageous nature of the post-season victory, perhaps as a unit the Sixers will get a singular focus that may have been lost during some road losses in December and January. Coach Brett Brown and general manager Elton Brand have repeatedly said that the Sixers, as currently built, were built for the post-season game. In Orlando, we’ll find out if it’s true.
