3. Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are currently the Bulls’ matchup in the first round of the playoffs. On paper, this matchup is not great for Chicago. The Sixers have been the better team most of the regular season. Joel Embiid and James Harden are much better than DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine.
But both players’ postseason history says that this matchup isn’t the end of the world.
Embiid may win the MVP award this year and has been a terrific player since entering the league … but when the playoffs roll around he hasn’t been able to will his team to key wins. Last year, we saw the Sixers have numerous opportunities to put the Atlanta Hawks away, and Embiid would float around the perimeter and force up ad fadeaway jump-shots in crunch time.
Maybe it’s fatigue. It could bad luck. Whatever it is, his playoff history is summarized by “coming up short.”
Harden’s playoff reputation is a little more nuanced. He has shown throughout his career that he can single-handedly beat a team in the playoffs. He did in 2015 against the Los Angeles Clippers and in 2020 against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
But he has also shown that as the postseason progresses, his output regresses. The farther he gets into the playoffs, he becomes passive and inconsistent. In the Brooklyn Nets’ second-round series against the Bucks last year, Harden wasn’t able to score consistently. The Bucks’ length disrupted Harden’s drives and ability to create separation.
The issue for the Bulls will be that they are dealing with Harden in the first round — a time where he normally looks like Superman. But he’s older, and the regression can take hold sooner, as seen this entire season in his first step.
Overall Chicago doesn’t match up well with the Sixers on paper, but Philly’s mental lapses could give the Bulls an upset similar to what the Hawks did last season.