This wasn't Dwyane Wade's first rodeo.
The three-time NBA champ and former Finals MVP has played with and against the best players of the last 15 years. After his Heat team suffered a Game 5 and 4-1 series loss Tuesday night, the future Hall of Famer heaped praise upon the Sixers' young stars, Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid.
"They're the future of the NBA," Wade said. "The NBA is in great hands with Ben and Joel and those kind of individuals."
The young Sixers delivered at home, closing out their series in five games with a 104-91 win. Simmons (14 points, 10 rebounds, six assists) and Embiid (19 points, 12 boards) shined once again.
As the Sixers look forward to an Eastern Conference Semifinal matchup with either Boston or Milwaukee, the question is simple: how far can these kids go?
"When you've got great individual players - no matter how old they are - they can do some special things," Wade said. "These guys believe it. You can see it in their eyes. Embiid is not just talk. He's not just a Twitter rat kind of person. He's a player. He's very good.
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"I believe in those guys. I believe they're going to be special for awhile, but also, if they believe they can do it now, they can."
Wade won two NBA titles with the greatest player on the planet, LeBron James. While the Sixers focus on now, there's been a lot of talk from fans and media of King James' jumping ship and coming to Philly.
According to Wade, the Fresh Prince may be the only royalty the Sixers need.
"I don't think he had a bad game," Wade said of Simmons. "A young player like that, in his first playoffs - he didn't have a bad game. You knew from the first time you saw him in summer league that he was special. If you know basketball, if you know talent, you know someone is special.
"I think the thing that was impressive about him all year, is he just continued to get better and better and better. To the point where it's like that guy in Cleveland - doesn't have bad games. The imprint that [Simmons and James] put on the game is more than just scoring. [Simmons] does so much. The sky is the limit obviously for him and this organization. "
The Sixers have become a trendy pick to win the East and advance to the finals. Sure, they have youth, but Wade believes the organization has done an excellent job adding veteran players like JJ Redick, Marco Belinelli and Ersan Ilyasova to complement Simmons and Embiid.
Wade experienced success at a young age and sees no reason this Sixers team can't do the same.
"It's definitely possible," Wade said of the Sixers going on a deep playoff run. "Sometimes an organization, they get lucky and draft someone special. And these guys got to draft more than one person special and you were able to build around that.
"That's what these guys have the ability to do. I was lucky enough in my first year to go to the second round. And then the next year go to the Eastern Conference Finals and the next year win it all. It definitely can happen right away."
