Maximum results with minimum effort: Also without Joel Embiidstopped by a knee sprain suffered in race-3 which will need to be carefully monitored in the coming days, ai Philadelphia 76ers a second half played at a decent level is enough for also win game 4 and close the series against the Brooklyn Nets with a 4-0 “coat”.. The Sixers are confirmed as the bete noire of the Nets — eight meetings in the season and eight wins for Philadelphia — running away in the last quarter even in a evening under 40% to team shooting, with James Harden (4/18 shooting for 17 points, 8 rebounds and 11 assists) and Tyrese Maxey (6/20 for 16 points) largely under control. It is then “the others” that make the difference, led by Tobias Harris’ 25 points, 12 rebounds and De’Anthony Melton’s 15 points, but above all by the landslide victory in the rebound fight. The Sixers indeed take 63 rebounds against 46 for opponents led by Paul Reed’s 15, with Embiid’s replacement taking 8 only in attack (against 5 of all the Nets combined) to which he adds 10 points. Philadelphia can thus enjoy several days off waiting for the series between Boston and Atlanta (currently 2-1 for the Celtics) decree the opponent of the next round.
The Nets stop in the second half, Bridges struggles again
The Nets’ hopes barely last a whileclosed 8 lengths ahead on 48-40, only to collapse in the second half and suffer the ninth straight playoff loss. For the Nets it is the third “coat” in four seasons, after those suffered in 2020 against Toronto in the Orlando bubble and last season against Boston. Three very different situations for interpreters and hopes but which nonetheless tell of the difficulties of the Nets, also witnessed in game 4: Mikal Bridges finished another underwhelming 6/18 shooting game with 17 points, struggling to fill the role of first offensive option for a playoff team; to lead the Nets are then the Spencer Dinwiddie has 20 points and Nic Claxton’s 19 with 12 rebounds to which Cameron Johnson’s 11+10 are added, but this knockout opens a summer that will have to see the Nets make choices for their future — starting with how to handle the very intricate situation linked to Ben Simmons.