Daily News | Sixers not consumed by past second-round failures: ‘None of that matters’
BOSTON — The 76ers plan to do something that the franchise hasn’t since 2001: Advance out of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
It’s why the Sixers hired coach Doc Rivers and president of basketball operations Daryl Morey in 2020. It’s why they acquired James Harden in a trade with the Brooklyn Nets last season. And it’s why they added P.J. Tucker, De’Anthony Melton and Danuel House Jr. this past offseason.Are the Sixers built to win in the playoffs without Joel Embiid? Do they have a chance against Boston?
The Sixers’ goal is to win the NBA title. But you can’t win one without first advancing beyond the second round, where they’re 1-11 in their last 12 appearances. They suffered conference semifinal exits in four of the past five seasons. The Sixers were swept by the Boston Celtics in the first round of 2020, the lone season they didn’t reach the second round during that stretch.
“I think for us, we focus on what we can control,” Harden said, “and that’s game by game, possession by possession. So for us, it’s just Game 1, taking it for what it is, possession by possession, quarter by quarter. And try to be the best that we can be.Harden added that he also can’t focus on individual struggles in the past. The 10th-time All-Star’s career has been filled with postseason struggles.
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