High Velocity Sport

Just how good are the Philadelphia 76ers?

After winning their final 16 games of the regular season and overpowering the Miami Heat in the second half of Game 1 of their playoff series, it’s a legitimate question.

With the Cleveland Cavaliers struggling, the Toronto Raptors bringing an ordinary playoff history and the Boston Celtics having to deal with major injuries, the Sixers may just be the most dangerous team in the Eastern Conference.

They get another chance to show off their strength, talent and drive when they host the Heat in Game 2 of the series Monday night.

      

NBA Schedule: Monday, April 16

8 p.m. ET on TNT: No. 6 Miami Heat at No. 3 Philadelphia 76ers; Philadelphia leads series 1-0

10:30 p.m. ET on ABC: No. 7 San Antonio Spurs at No. 2 Golden State Warriors; Golden State leads series 1-0.

      

NBA Playoff Schedule

Eastern Conference

No. 1 Toronto Raptors vs. No. 8 Washington Wizards, Toronto leads series 1-0.

Game 1: Toronto 114, Washington 106

Game 2: Washington Wizards at Toronto Raptors: April 17 at 7 p.m. ET on NBA TV

Game 3: Toronto Raptors at Washington Wizards: April 20 at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2

Game 4: Toronto Raptors at Washington Wizards: April 22 at 6 p.m. ET on TNT

*Game 5: Washington Wizards at Toronto Raptors: April 25 at TBD

*Game 6: Toronto Raptors at Washington Wizards: April 27 at TBD

*Game 7: Washington Wizards at Toronto Raptors: April 29 at TBD

              

No. 2 Boston Celtics vs. No. 7 Milwaukee Bucks, Boston leads series 1-0.

Game 1: Boston 113, Milwaukee 107 (OT)

Game 2: Milwaukee Bucks at Boston Celtics: April 17 at 8 p.m. ET on TNT

Game 3: Boston Celtics at Milwaukee Bucks: April 20 at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN

Game 4: Boston Celtics at Milwaukee Bucks: April 22 at 1 p.m. ET on ABC

*Game 5: Milwaukee Bucks at Boston Celtics: April 24 at TBD

*Game 6: Boston Celtics at Milwaukee Bucks: April 26 at TBD

*Game 7: Milwaukee Bucks at Boston Celtics: April 28 at TBD on TNT

           

No. 3 Philadelphia 76ers vs. No. 6 Miami Heat, Philadelphia leads series 1-0.

Game 1: Philadelphia 130, Miami 103

Game 2: Miami Heat at Philadelphia 76ers: April 16 at 8 p.m. ET on TNT

Game 3: Philadelphia 76ers at Miami Heat: April 19 at 7 p.m. ET on TNT

Game 4: Philadelphia 76ers at Miami Heat: April 21 at 2:30 p.m. ET on TNT

*Game 5: Miami Heat at Philadelphia 76ers: April 24 at TBD

*Game 6: Philadelphia 76ers at Miami Heat: April 26 at TBD

*Game 7: Miami Heat at Philadelphia 76ers: April 28 at TBD on TNT

           

No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 5 Indiana Pacers, Indiana leads series 1-0.

Game 1: Indiana 98, Cleveland 90

Game 2: Indiana Pacers at Cleveland Cavaliers: April 18 at 7 p.m. ET on TNT

Game 3: Cleveland Cavaliers at Indiana Pacers: April 20 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN

Game 4: Cleveland Cavaliers at Indiana Pacers: April 22 at 8:30 p.m. ET on TNT

*Game 5: Indiana Pacers at Cleveland Cavaliers: April 25 at TBD

*Game 6: Cleveland Cavaliers at Indiana Pacers: April 27 at TBD

*Game 7: Indiana Pacers at Cleveland Cavaliers  April 29 at TBD

*If necessary

       

Western Conference

No. 1 Houston Rockets vs. No. 8 Minnesota Timberwolves, Houston leads series 1-0.

Game 1: Houston 104, Minnesota 101

Game 2: Minnesota Timberwolves at Houston Rockets: April 18 at 9:30 p.m. ET on TNT

Game 3: Houston Rockets at Minnesota Timberwolves: April 21 at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN

Game 4: Houston Rockets at Minnesota Timberwolves: April 23 at 8 p.m. ET on TNT

*Game 5: Minnesota Timberwolves at Houston Rockets: April 25 at TBD

*Game 6: Houston Rockets at Minnesota Timberwolves: April 27 at TBD

*Game 7: Minnesota Timberwolves at Houston Rockets: April 29 at TBD

       

No. 2 Golden State Warriors vs. No. 7 San Antonio Spurs, Golden State leads series,  1-0.

Game 1: Golden State 113, San Antonio 92

Game 2: San Antonio Spurs at Golden State Warriors: April 16 at 10:30 p.m. ET on TNT

Game 3: Golden State Warriors at San Antonio Spurs: April 19 at 9:30 p.m. ET on TNT

Game 4: Golden State Warriors at San Antonio Spurs: April 22 at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC

*Game 5: San Antonio Spurs at Golden State Warriors: April 24 at TBD

*Game 6: Golden State Warriors at San Antonio Spurs: April 26 at TBD

*Game 7: San Antonio Spurs at Golden State Warriors: April 28 at TBD on TNT

            

No. 3 Portland Trail Blazers vs. No. 6 New Orleans Pelicans, New Orleans leads series,  1-0.

Game 1: New Orleans 97, Portland 95

Game 2: New Orleans Pelicans at Portland Trail Blazers: April 17 at 10:30 p.m. ET on TNT

Game 3: Portland Trail Blazers at New Orleans Pelicans: April 19 at 9 p.m. ET on NBA TV

Game 4: Portland Trail Blazers at New Orleans Pelicans: April 21 at 5 p.m. ET on TNT

*Game 5: New Orleans Pelicans at Portland Trail Blazers: April 24 at TBD

*Game 6: Portland Trail Blazers at New Orleans Pelicans: April 26 at TBD

*Game 7: New Orleans Pelicans at Portland Trail Blazers: April 28 at TBD on TNT

           

No. 4 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. No. 5 Utah Jazz, Oklahoma City leads series,  1-0.

Game 1: Oklahoma City 116, Utah 108

Game 2: Utah Jazz at Oklahoma City Thunder: April 18 at 8 p.m. ET on NBA TV

Game 3: Oklahoma City Thunder at Utah Jazz: April 21 at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN

Game 4: Oklahoma City Thunder at Utah Jazz: April 23 at 10:30 p.m. ET on TNT

*Game 5: Utah Jazz at Oklahoma City Thunder: April 25 at TBD

*Game 6: Oklahoma City Thunder at Utah Jazz: April 27 at TBD

*Game 7: Utah Jazz at Oklahoma City Thunder: April 29 at TBD   

      

The Sixers and Heat battled on relatively even terms during the first half of Game 1 with Miami having a four-point lead, but the second half was all Philadelphia. The 76ers outscored the Heat 74-43 in the final 24 minutes and turned the game into a runaway.

JJ Redick had 28 points to lead the Sixers, and they also received a huge contribution off the bench from Marco Belinelli, who made nine of 17 field goal attempts and scored 25 points. Rookie Ben Simmons had a major contribution with 17 points, 14 assists and nine rebounds.

Kelly Olynyk scored 26 points coming off the bench for the Heat, but Miami will need a better performance from its starters if they are going to be more competitive with the Sixers.

Philadelphia is a 6.5-point favorite in the game, according to OddsShark.

The Sixers have gotten encouraging news regarding injured big man Joel Embiid, who has missed the last nine games with a broken orbital bone. He could be back in the lineup later in this series, and he averaged 22.9 points and 11.0 rebounds during the season.

His return will make them that much tougher to beat.

The Warriors have been a dominant team in the postseason, with three straight trips to the NBA Finals and two championships.

They were in their usual form in their playoff-opening rout of the Spurs, and they will attempt to dominate their opponents in Game 2 Monday night.

Veteran forward Manu Ginobili explained that the Spurs have to be more focused in their attempt to even the series.

“We’ve got to regroup, feel hurt, upset, kind of desperate,” Ginobili said, per Stats LLC (h/t ESPN.com). “We don’t want to go home 0-2. So we’ll fight as hard as we can in Game 2.”

Golden State turned up the defensive pressure and held San Antonio to 40 percent shooting. Leading scorer LaMarcus Aldridge was limited to 14 points as he was pressed hard by JaVale McGee.

The Warriors are playing without injured guard Steph Curry, but Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant easily handled the scoring responsibilities with 27 and 24 points, respectively. McGee added 15 points in addition to fulfilling his defensive responsibilities against Aldridge.

Golden State is favored by 9.5 points in Game 2.

        

Predictions

It’s difficult to see the Sixers slowing down any time soon. This is a team that is ready to string explosive efforts together as they made significant progress this year and were especially hot at the end of the season.

Philadelphia is a dominant team at home, and the Heat don’t have the offensive firepower to threaten their opponents for 48 minutes. The Sixers win the game by double-digits and take a 2-0 lead in the series.

if the Spurs were playing with Kawhi Leonard—he’s not even sitting on the bench—they would have a much better chance of hanging with the Warriors. He played just nine games this season. The Warriors are a much better team without Curry than the Spurs are without Leonard, and Game 2 will not be close.

Golden State puts the Spurs away by the end of the third quarter and rolls to another victory.