Sir Charles in Charge
Fansided

Cleveland Cavaliers: The 76ers could be a scary first-round playoff matchup

By Alan Mena

LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 09: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers reacts to a Cavaliers foul during the first half against the LA Clippers at Staples Center on March 9, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 09: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers reacts to a Cavaliers foul during the first half against the LA Clippers at Staples Center on March 9, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Cleveland Cavaliers have had a roller coaster season. As the playoffs near, they do not want to meet the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round 

Although the Cleveland Cavaliers are 2-1 against the Philadelphia 76ers this season, a playoff series wouldn’t be in favor of the reigning Eastern Conference champs.

Right now, with the current Eastern Conference standings, the Sixers and Cavs would face off against each other in a 3-6 first-round playoff matchup.

The Cavaliers won their first meeting against the Sixers on November 27th, 2017 by 22 points, led by LeBron James as always.

More from Sir Charles In Charge

Their second matchup was on December 9th, 2017, which excluded Joel Embiid and Kevin Love; resulting in a seven-point victory for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

At this point, the Cavaliers don’t seem to need much help against the 76ers without their 2nd best player.

They did, however, lose their third matchup on March 1st by 11 points with Love sidelined.

An important fact to note is that Kevin Love played only in one of three meetings between both teams, which will make a big difference come playoff time.

The Cavaliers are 5th in scoring, 23rd in rebounding, 10th in assists, and 27th in points allowed.

The 76ers are currently 10th in scoring, 1st in rebounds, 3rd in assists, and 13th in points allowed.

From the looks of their team stats, there are major differences between both teams; rebounds, assists, and points allowed.

The Philadelphia 76ers pose a threat to the Cleveland Cavaliers because of their superior stats but more importantly Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid.

Simmons and Embiid, both 21 and 23 years old, have a bright future ahead of them. The 76ers are 3-8 without Embiid and will need him healthy for a chance to upset the Cavaliers.

Although they are young and lack playoff experience, the 76ers have the potential to disrupt the Cavaliers’ dominance of the Eastern Conference. The star power of Simmons and Embiid will undoubtedly be a hurdle for the new-look Cavaliers.

Along with their young stars, the 76ers have a supporting cast capable of dismantling more experienced teams. If there’s one glaring weak spot for the Sixers, though, it’s their depth. Philadelphia has one of the lowest scoring benches in the league, and often loses leads that were established by the starting 5 awfully quickly as soon as the second unit enters the game.

Must Read: Golden State Warriors: 3 teams that can beat the Dubs in the playoffs

But make no mistake, the Sixers have the offensive firepower and star presence to make a first-round playoff series with the Cleveland Cavaliers interesting. Not to mention the entire LeBron-to-Philly narrative that will definitely get a ton of play.

The Cavs play the Sixers one more time during the regular season, on April 6, and then possibly a few more times in the playoffs.

Home/Cleveland Cavaliers