The first game of the 2019 NBA postseason also might be the most intriguing game, because the Nets actually have a puncher’s chance against the 76ers.
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 13: Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers reacts in the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on February 13,2019 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
The first game of the 2019 NBA postseason also might be the most intriguing game of the 2019 postseason, because the Brooklyn Nets actually have a puncher’s chance against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Why?
Because Philly is not at full strength going into Game 1 of the best-of-7 series with Joel Embiid suffering from a knee injury, and because Brooklyn’s point guard tandem of D’Angelo Russell and Spencer Dinwiddie presents matchup nightmares for the Sixers.
The Nets went 2-2 against Philly, but an epic collapse that ended with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Jimmy Butler at the Barclays Center prevented that record from being 3-1.
The series tips off Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia, where coach Brett Brown will be on the hot seat later this spring if the Sixers fail to reach the Eastern Conference finals. The Sixers have the most talented starting five in the NBA when they are at full strength, but there is only one basketball to be shared by Embiid, Ben Simmons, Tobias Harris, J. Redick and Jimmy Butler, and keeping all of them happy and on the same page has been particularly vexing for Brown, whose old-school messages sometimes fall on deaf ears in a locker room populated by members of a younger generation who do not know or care all that much about Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs culture — the culture where Brown was groomed under Coach Gregg Popovich.
Sometimes, when one team has high expectations and the other has very little to lose, it creates an advantage for the underdog.
In this series, that works in favor of the Nets, who are more interested in what they can accomplish in free agency this summer than in what they can get done in the postseason. That will allow them to play loose… which sometimes makes things easier because the pressure is on the other team.
“We’re planning on him playing,” Nets coach Kenny Atkinson said. “I think that’s what’s going to happen. That’s my experience. We’ll adjust if he doesn’t play.”
Embiid told reporters Friday: “I have no idea.” And that means we will all probably be waiting until tipoff to see what the Sixers’ starting lineup looks like. If Embiid sits, Brooklyn could steal Game 1. And if that happens, that series could go seven games.
