It's not an original thought to say the Eastern Conference is baaaaad, but if you needed a reminder, look at the Sixers' upcoming slate of games.
From Tuesday at Detroit through Dec. 19 against the Knicks, 20 of the Sixers' next 30 games are against teams expected to finish comfortably below .500.
It's a whole lot of Nets, Hawks, Knicks, Cavs, Grizzlies, Hornets, Pistons, Magic, Clippers and Suns. Just so many bad teams.
The East has five shoe-in playoff teams: the Celtics, Raptors, Sixers, Bucks and Pacers. The Wizards will likely make it, too, although they're trending in the wrong direction.
The rest of the East is basura.
In the West, you have obviously bad teams like the Kings, Suns, Mavericks and Grizzlies.
That's 13 teams the Sixers would be favored over by at least 8½ points at home.
Philadelphia 76ers
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The Sixers' first two months look a lot like their final stretch in the last regular season, when they fattened up on cellar-dwellers to rip off a 16-game win streak. During that run, they played only three games against teams that went on to the playoffs.
So if you're going to be without key role players like Wilson Chandler and Mike Muscala, now is the time. The Sixers' depth and lack of shooters will be tested in late-December and January.
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