Sixers Seem to Be Waving the White Flag on This Season

Corey Chmara

After their loss to the Milwaukee Bucks last night, the Philadelphia 76ers have fallen to 15-26 on the season and appear to have somewhat "waved the white flag" on the year. With Joel Embiid out for most, if not all, of this week, the Sixers face a challenging schedule ahead. In addition to Embiid, the team has also been playing without Paul George, who has missed the last two games due to a groin injury.

This past week, the Sixers went 0-4 and are currently riding a six-game losing streak. Joel Embiid missed all of the games this week, including matchups against Oklahoma City, New York, Indiana, and Milwaukee — all of which are above the .500 mark.

The Sixers opened play last Tuesday at home against Oklahoma City, which currently has the best record in the NBA. None of Maxey, Embiid, or George played in this game, which turned out to be another lost cause. The Sixers lost 118-102 and were never truly in the game. However, Justin Edwards had the best performance of his professional career, scoring 25 points and grabbing 6 rebounds in 35 minutes off the bench. Jeff Dowtin Jr. also contributed 18 points off the bench in 29 minutes.

David Dow, Getty Images

On Wednesday, the second leg of a back-to-back, the Sixers faced the New York Knicks, who were without All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns. The Sixers, of course, were still without Joel Embiid due to a knee injury. Both Paul George and Tyrese Maxey played, but their efforts fell short as the Sixers forced overtime but lost 125-119. This was a very winnable game, but the Knicks took over in overtime, and the Sixers had no answers. Maxey led the team with 33 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists. Paul George also had a solid outing, scoring 26 points on 9-of-20 shooting. With Andre Drummond, Caleb Martin, Kyle Lowry, and KJ Martin all out due to injury, the Sixers didn't have much depth off the bench.

After two days off, the Sixers had a weekend back-to-back at Indiana and Milwaukee. Paul George did not play in either game, and the Sixers lost 115-102 to Indiana and 123-109 to Milwaukee. There’s not much to analyze here — the Sixers simply lacked the talent and depth to compete effectively.

Currently sitting at 15-26, with multiple injuries and a tough schedule ahead, is it time for the Sixers to give up on the season? Personally, while I'd rather see the Sixers compete for a play-in spot and eventually make the playoffs, it seems Joel Embiid's health might prevent that from happening. Embiid has played in just 13 out of 41 games this season, and the team's slow start may have already done too much damage to their playoff hopes. That said, the Sixers are only three games back from Chicago, who currently hold the 10th seed and are in the play-in tournament.

It will be interesting to see how the Sixers' management and coaching staff proceed, but it’s clear that making the playoffs is going to be a tough task.

Bart Young, Getty Images

This week, the Sixers have three games, two of which are against teams with records above .500. On Tuesday, they’ll face the Denver Nuggets on the road at 10:00 PM ET on TNT. Joel Embiid has already been ruled out for this one, which seemed inevitable given he hasn’t played in Denver since 2019. Paul George’s status is still undetermined, as are Drummond, Yabusele, Lowry, Martin, and KJ Martin.

On Friday, the Sixers will host the Cleveland Cavaliers, who are currently 36-6 and own the best record in the Eastern Conference. As usual, it's uncertain who will be available for the Sixers in this one. On the latter half of a back-to-back, the Sixers will fly to Chicago on Saturday to face the Bulls, who are currently three games ahead of the Sixers in the standings.

It looks like another tough week for the Sixers, filled with injuries, back-to-backs, and difficult matchups. We'll see how they perform while on a six-game losing streak.

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