Somebody needs to wake up and smell the history, because it’s a hell of a lot closer than anybody with the 76ers seemed to realize after their embarrassing 103-88 no-show of a loss to the Raptors in Game 5.
Maybe the onus is on Doc Rivers. Maybe it is on James Harden himself. Most likely, it’s on both. The Sixers suddenly are two losses away from becoming the first NBA team to blow a 3-0 lead in a series, and the two guys who should best recognize imminent postseason failure don’t seem to see it coming.
The only thing riper than the pre-soak-and-high-temperature-wash pants-wrecker the home team laid Monday night was the sense of denial that permeated the postgame interview room. The Sixers understood just how bad they were, don’t you worry. It’s just that they seemed to believe that avoiding a similar fate in Game 6 would not require much intervention on their part.
