The Philadelphia 76ers, fresh off a 122-103 win over the Wizards on Wednesday that snapped their 12-game losing streak, are at home to take on the Atlanta Hawks as their season is almost finished. While the Hawks will be moving on to the play-in tournament and potentially further in the playoffs, the Sixers will be headed to an early and much-needed respite from what has become of this season.
After tonight’s game and then one against the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, the team can finally move on from this lost and wasted season.
Sixers game information
Who: Atlanta Hawks (38-42) at Philadelphia 76ers (24-56)
When: 7 p.m. EST
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Latest on the Sixers
With this season grinding to a halt this weekend, the only thing that’s been on everyone’s mind is if the Sixers can manage to lose enough games to secure the fifth-worst record in the league. While the Nets have given them a run for their money, they remain two games behind the Sixers with just two left to play. With a loss tonight, the Sixers can secure that fifth-worst record and a 68% chance of retaining their first-round draft pick in the NBA’s lottery.
In addition to almost everyone from the Sixers rotation being out for the game—as has become standard this season, Philadelphia has listed Quentin Grimes and Justin Edwards as questionable. Grimes’ play and Edwards’s development have given the team something positive in an otherwise forgetful season.
Grimes, in particular, has been stellar since coming over from the Mavericks at the deadline. He’s averaging 22.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.6 assists while shooting 38.9% on his three-point attempts. The Sixers have found another stellar young player for their future backcourt if they can keep him this offseason.
Edwards wasn’t promised anything as he came to the Sixers as an undrafted free agent this past off-season. The former, highly touted recruit has given the Sixers some better options for a young wing player than they’ve had in the past couple of years.
In the 44 games he’s played this season, Edwards is averaging 10.1 points per game while shooting 36.3% on his threes. While the numbers don’t explode off the page, his minutes were limited to the start of the season. He’s come a long way since and, over his last 10 games, is shooting 39.5 on his threes while contributing 13.5 points per game.
Latest on the Hawks
The Hawks are coming to town, fresh off a 133-109 victory over the Nets on Thursday night. With the Hawks battling the Bulls, Heat, and Magic for seeding in the play-in tournament, they’re going to try to close out their season on a high note with a couple of wins. The Sixers shouldn’t be much of a problem, as the last time the two teams met, the Hawks won 132-119 while shooting 55% from the floor and 46% on their threes that game. Tonight doesn’t look like it’ll be much different.
The Hawks were considered an up-and-coming team in the East just a few short years ago, but that has fallen by the wayside for a team that is doomed to the middle. Not good enough to compete with the top teams in the conference and not bad enough to get into the draft lottery. Trae Young, despite all of his efforts, just can’t will the team to victory, but may see a brighter future as the team does have some younger, developing talent.
Zaccharie Risacher (20) scored 38 points last night and had four rebounds. Dyson Daniels (22) scored 10 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists in the Nets’ win. The team also has Jalen Johnson (23), who was lost for the season with a torn labrum. Prior to that injury, he was averaging 18.9 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game. There’s hope for the Hawks, but not this season. They’ll be able to take solace in making the playoffs and finishing the season with wins over teams that had higher expectations.
What to watch for tonight
The thought of the Sixers winning their final three games while the Nets could go on to lose their final three and, therefore, giving the Sixers a more difficult road to keeping their pick is a tough one to stomach. It would be on the same level of having someone, at the start of the season, tell the fans that Joel Embiid, Paul George, Kelly Oubre Jr., Tyrese Maxey, Jared McCain, Kyle Lowry, and Eric Gordon would all be lost for the season at some point during the 82 game stretch of the year. Painful.
Well, here they are. The final iteration of the 2024-25 Philadelphia 76ers is guaranteed to shoot under 35% on their three-point attempts, less than 45% from the floor, being out-rebounded, out-scored, out-hustled, and beat up for lots of points in the paint.
The lost season has taken a toll on the players, the coaches, the management, and the fans, but it’s almost over. Two more painful losses and the Sixers can hang their hopes on the ping-pong balls bouncing their way at the draft lottery. If they miss out on the first overall pick, they will at least not fall further back than sixth place.
Keep an eye on Lonnie Walker IV and Ricky Council IV as they continue to try to show why they belong on the team next season. Watch for Adem Bona, whose continued growth and development has been a huge surprise for the team and the fans who spent all of those years wishing Paul Reed would do the same thing.
Bona has been another gem from this past year’s draft class and will allow the Sixers some room to maneuver this summer, as they’re aware he can give them quality minutes as a backup center. It may be your last time to see Alex Reese, Jeff Dowtin, Marcus Bagley, and Colin Castleton in a Sixers uniform, so take that as you will.
Prediction
Sixers 107 – Hawks 133
