Sixers Seek Elusive Championship: Playoff Schedule, Odds, Predictions, More

PHILADELPHIA, PA — Weary and wary Philadelphia sports fans have been here in springs past.

For six years now, ever since the emergence of Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, the 76ers have been among the NBA's elite. Each season has ended prematurely in the first or second round of the playoffs, and Sixers fans have been with just a taste of the pentultimate stages of postseason.

The record is impressive yet grim in its own way: five years, five playoff appearances, four losses in the Eastern Conference semifinals (and one in the first round).

Every season, fans have reason to believe it's "the" year for the Sixers, but 2022-23 might be their best shot at winning it all yet.

For one, Joel Embiid is at the height of his prime. There's a chance he could get even better, but he's never been quite this great: a league-leading and career high in average points per game (33.1), and a career highs in assists (4.2). He's coupled that with elite rebounding (10.4 per game), and he averages a steal a game. He's the favorite to win a much-deserved first MVP award of his career.

As a team, the 54-win Sixers haven't won so many games since Allen Iverson's Eastern Conference championship team won 56 in 2001. And according to Basketball Reference, this is the best offensive team in Sixers history, with a 117.7 overall offensive rating (an estimate of points produced per 100 possessions).

And with James Harden, Tyrese Maxey, and Tobias Harris firing on all cylinders, Embiid has never had a more complementary and high-powered unit flanking him.

They've been close before, and not every season ended bitterly. In 2019, no one blamed the Sixers for falling to an otherwordly Kawhi Leonard in a seven game showdown with the Toronto Raptors in the semis. That series was arguably the best of the entire postseason, and the Sixers were arguably the second best team in the NBA.

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And in 2017, their breakout year, no one blamed the Sixers for falling to similar team of destiny in LeBron James' Cavaliers.

But in 2022-23, it's truly a NBA Finals championship, or bust.

Sizers are heavily favored to beat the Nets, as 8.5 point favorites, per DraftKings.

They have the fifth best odds to win the Finals at +1000, according to FanDuel.

While a full schedule has not yet been released, here's what we know so far about round one:

Game 1: Saturday, April 15 at 1 p.m. in Philadelphia. Televised on ESPN.

Game 2: Monday, April 17, at 7:30 p.m., in Philadelphia

Game 3: Thursday, April 20, 7:30 p.m., in Brooklyn

Game 4: Saturday. April 22, 1.p.m., in Brooklyn

Game 5: (if neccessary): Date and time TBD, in Brooklyn

Game 6: (if neccessary): Date and time TBD, in Philadelphia

Game 7: (if neccessary): Date and time TBD, in Philadelphia