Philadelphia 76ers playoff qualification: Shutting down Paul George and Tyrese Maxey increasingly becomes East team’s best option

The Philadelphia 76ers were crowned by many as the winners of the 2024 free agency period after they signed star forward Paul George away from the Los Angeles Clippers. However, with less than 20 games left in the regular season, the 76ers find themselves pursuing the 10th and final spot in the Eastern Conference play-in tournament.

The Philadelphia 76ers entered the season with championship aspirations. Joel Embiid was coming off an Olympics run where he showed flashes of his 2023 MVP form and the Philadelphia front office had built one of the best rosters around their franchise center that he has ever had. Lingering knee injuries hampered Embiid and ultimately ended his season, making things difficult for his team.

Philadelphia 76ers’ playoff scenario

At 22-43, the Philadelphia 76ers sit 13th in the Eastern Conference with 17 games left. They face an uphill climb if they want to sneak into the bottom of the play-in tournament. They are five games behind the Chicago Bulls in the win column and have to surpass both them and the teams around them that are still fighting for the 10th seed, like the Brooklyn Nets and Toronto Raptors.

Whether Joel Embiid has been on the court or not, the 76ers have struggled mightily with inconsistency outside of star guard Tyrese Maxey. Paul George has had one of the biggest drop-offs in recent NBA history, averaging six fewer points per game this year than last season. Maxey has been relied on heavily to create offense, but defenses have been able to hone in on and limit his effectiveness.

If they can string together enough wins down the stretch and chase down the Chicago Bulls for the 10th spot in the Eastern Conference, the 76ers would face off against the Miami Heat in their first play-in game if the rest of the standings hold where they are currently. A win would earn them a matchup with the loser of the Magic-Hawks game with the eighth seed on the line.

Why Philadelphia 76ers should let go of the rope already

Looking at the rest of their schedule, the Philadelphia 76ers have one of the easiest ends to the regular season of anyone in the NBA, according to Tankathon. However, all five of the teams currently ahead of them in the standings are in the bottom 10 when it comes to their strength of schedule, making it very unlikely that Maxey and the 76ers can catch them.

With Joel Embiid being shut down for the year and the possibility of a medical retirement not out of the question, the Philadelphia 76ers might be better served throwing in the towel and holding on to their first-round draft pick this year. In order for Philadelphia to hold on to that pick, it needs to be within the top six of the draft. If it doesn't, it is owed to the OKC Thunder.

This draft class is one of the more intriguing ones in recent memory, headlined by players like Cooper Flagg, Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper. It also projects to be one of the deeper prospect groups, with solid players to be found throughout the first round. That being said, the Philadelphia 76ers are in desperate need of a boost and could target players like Jase Richardson or Kaspara Jakucionis.

Bringing in a high-level rookie is only one step on the path back to contention for the 76ers, but they will need to regain their health if they want to be considered a relevant playoff team in the Eastern Conference. In a perfect world, Joel Embiid, Jared McCain and Eric Gordon all return to full health by the beginning of next season, and Paul George finds his way out of the biggest slump of his career.

While they might not be competing for anything significant for the rest of this season, the Philadelphia 76ers shouldn't be overlooked when talking about contenders next season. When everyone is healthy and on the court, Philadelphia has one of the best top-to-bottom rosters in the NBA, headlined by a legitimate Big Three in Embiid, Maxey and George. It just won't be this year.