For years, the Philadelphia 76ers have been unable to get past the second round of the playoffs.
They couldn’t do it with Brett Brown, and they couldn’t do it with Doc Rivers.
Ben Simmons failed to help Joel Embiid get over the hump, and James Harden didn’t do much to help his cause, either.
Now, the expectation is that a better coach like Nick Nurse and an up-and-coming sidekick like Tyrese Maxey will be better for him, and that could be true.
Nonetheless, Embiid has looked pretty gassed in his first two games back from a long layoff, and while he’s going to ramp up his conditioning in time for the playoffs, he might still not be close to 100% by that time.
That’s why NBA analyst Alan Hahn wants to put the brakes on the new expectations for this Sixers team.
.@alanhahn thinks everyone needs to “dial back” their expectations for Joel Embiid’s return pic.twitter.com/7nnEMzgpNS
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) April 5, 2024
Talking on Get Up, he claimed that people are expecting Embiid to do on one leg what he hasn’t been able to do on two legs.
He pointed out that he looks pretty tired right now, which is something that has been a recurring issue for him in the playoffs throughout the course of his career.
While he doesn’t deny his greatness and his impact, he’s just not healthy enough to get this team over the hump right now, or so it seems.
That’s a fair point, especially considering that the Sixers are currently No. 8 in the Eastern Conference, meaning a first-round matchup with the Boston Celtics is pretty much on the table, and they’ve been Embiid’s kryptonite since he entered the league.
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