NBA Playoffs 2020: How do you beat the Philadelphia 76ers?

The 76ers have a lot of high-end talent but fitting the pieces together is a challenge for head coach Brett Brown. That makes Philadelphia vulnerable.

Any team that can trot Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons out in the same starting five has a chance to make serious noise in the playoffs. Bu that doesn’t mean the 76ers are a strong favorite to win a title in 2020. In fact, Philadelphia could be a team Eastern Conference foes want to face in the first round.

The 76ers weren’t playing bad basketball before the season went on hiatus, but their 39-26 overall record was only good enough to place them as the No. 6 seed in their own conference. That qualifies as a mild disappointment for a team that entered the 2019-20 campaign with the belief that they could contend for an Eastern Conference crown.

That relatively mediocre record is a big reason why Brett Brown is making a big change before the season kicks back into gear. Moving Simmons from the point guard spot all the way down to the power forward position is a seismic change for this club. Simmons firmly believes he can still be a playmaker at the 4, but the introduction of Shake Milton into the team’s starting lineup should give them a lot more spacing on offense. The success of that move could determine just how far the 76ers can advance in this year’s playoffs.

The change also means that Philadelphia’s potential playoff opponents might need to adjust their game plans quickly to challenge the 76ers. Observing the following three rules will really set up Philly’s opponents for success.

So, how do you beat the Philadelphia 76ers in a playoff series?

Speed the game up: The 76ers do most of their best work in the halfcourt. Specifically, Embiid is an absolute nightmare when he’s given time to establish low post possession. There are plenty of reasons why Philadelphia only entered the break ranked as No. 19 in pace.

Any opponent that encounters the Sixers in the postseason should do their best to make it a transition series. Speeding the game up can cause problems for Harris and Horford. Harris is a skilled option at either forward spot, but his lack of athleticism can show up in transition. Horford still has quick feet, but his age is starting to catch up to him. He is vulnerable against bigs who can beat him to the spot on the break.

The 76ers want to grind their opponents into submission. Playing methodically against them makes their length a tremendous advantage. Speeding the game up helps neutralize some of Philadelphia’s greatest weapons.

Encourage Josh Richardson to shoot: Richardson is a very athletic wing who has shown an ability to be a quality perimeter shooter in his NBA career. That’s not happening for him this season though. His inability to hit shots from distance ha really exacerbated Philadelphia’s spacing issues this season.

To date, Richardson is only shooting 32.7 percent from 3 and 42.9 percent from the field overall. Those figures make him an offensive liability in any lineup where he’s playing either the shooting guard or small forward spot. Opponents would be well served to make him prove that he can beat them from 3 before they make any effort to close him out hard.

It’s possible Richardson can get hot and make a team pay for that kind of tactic, but it’s a move any 76ers opponent should try in the postseason. It’s hard to envision any scenario where he gives his team anything more than average 3-point shooting throughout the course of an entire series. Any shot Richardson takes from three is a win for 76ers’ opponents.

Challenge Joel Embiid at the rim: Embiid is the 76ers’ best player by a wide margin and the break has allowed him to get completely healthy. Philadelphia can reasonably expect to play him big minutes once the playoffs arrive.

Their postseason opponents can’t expect to be successful if Embiid is permitted to play 40+ minutes per night. He’s just too dominant in the post to survive for that length of time. Embiid can dominate the lane at both ends of the floor.

He does have one fatal flow other than health. Embiid still has a bad habit of trying to challenge any shot that approaches him on the defensive end. The fact that he’s averaging 5.5 fouls per 100 possessions on the season should be a bullseye for teams looking to knock off the 76ers.

The right strategy is to drive the ball at Embiid early and often. He’s going to block some shots, but he’s also going to pick up fouls because he lacks the understanding of when to settle for simply contesting shots. Opponents must use Embiid’s desire to block every shot against him.

Getting Embiid in foul trouble will be vital for Philadelphia’s opponents in the postseason. He’s borderline impossible to stop when he’s on the floor. On the flip side, his team becomes very average very quickly when he’s forced to the bench. Embiid’s inability to stay out of foul trouble is the 76ers’ Achilles heel.