The NBA continues to toss some ideas around as they continue to move towards a resumption of the 2019-20 season that has been suspended since March 11. There has been the idea of just going straight to the playoffs as is–which means the 6 seed Philadelphia 76ers would face the 3 seed Boston Celtics–or they maybe play some regular-season games first, and now they could possibly re-seed the entire system.
Yes, on Monday, the idea of just re-seeding the entire NBA Playoffs and just have it go 1 through 16 is now on the table. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst says “I still think it’s going to be a hard pass”, but it is now on the table as the NBA works on a resumption.
"I still think it's going to be a hard pass."@WindhorstESPN on the possibility of the NBA re-seeding teams 1-16, regardless of conference. pic.twitter.com/kDBk8QlSb2
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) May 25, 2020
So what would that mean for Philadelphia? Well, they would be the 12 seed in the playoffs and face the 5 seed which would still be the Celtics at the end of the day. However, their opponents would change and get tougher based on this new format.
For one, if they were to get past the Celtics, they would most likely have to take on the Los Angeles Clippers in Round 2 who would be an NBA Finals opponent under normal circumstances. Then, assuming they get past Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers, they would then most likely have to face Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks. That is all before the Finals, too.
Better or Worse?
The 2020 NBA Playoffs With Straight Seeding pic.twitter.com/39ljLPA1Ax— Kirk Goldsberry (@kirkgoldsberry) May 25, 2020
On the other side of the bracket, there’s LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers lurking as well as possibly James Harden and the Houston Rockets. Winning the 2020 title would not be an easy task, to begin with, but this new setup would make things a bit tougher for Philadelphia. [lawrence-related id=31524,31516,31500]