Section 215
Fansided

76ers should view Game 1 against Raptors as must-win situation

By Dan Parzych

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 18: Head coach Brett Brown of the Philadelphia 76ers speaks to Tobias Harris #33 and Ben Simmons #25 in the fourth quarter against the Brooklyn Nets during game three of Round One of the 2019 NBA Playoffs at Barclays Center on April 18, 2019 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 18: Head coach Brett Brown of the Philadelphia 76ers speaks to Tobias Harris #33 and Ben Simmons #25 in the fourth quarter against the Brooklyn Nets during game three of Round One of the 2019 NBA Playoffs at Barclays Center on April 18, 2019 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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The semifinals will get underway for the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday when they take on the Toronto Raptors.

After taking down the Brooklyn Nets with ease for the most part other than Game 1, the Philadelphia 76ers now focus their attention on a much tougher opponent in the Toronto Raptors for the semifinals of the playoffs.

Back at the beginning of the season, the Sixers knew the chances of meeting the Raptors in the postseason would be pretty high since the team was considered one of the big winners from summer after landing Kawhi Leonard in a trade.

While Toronto was already a serious contender before when DeMar DeRozan was part of the picture, the addition of Leonard has taken this team to new levels with their sets of finally earning a trip to the NBA Finals.

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Of course, if that’s going to have any chance of happening, Toronto will need to figure out a way to get by Philadelphia first, which based off their history since 2013 may not be that much of a problem.

Words can’t even describe how frustrating it has been to watch the Sixers struggle the way they do against the Raptors, as Philadelphia has lost 21 of the last 24 games in this series, including 13 in a row at Toronto.

Clearly, the only chance the Sixers have at advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals will be if that unfortunate losing streak in Toronto officially comes to an end.

And with the series officially kicking off Saturday night in front of what will be a hostile Raptors crowd, the Sixers should view Game 1 as a must win.

Since this series has the potential to go to seven games when looking at the intensity surrounding these two teams, Philadelphia needs to do whatever it takes to make an early statement to avoid falling early in this series to Toronto.

The Sixers remember how awful it felt around this time last year when they fell behind in their series against the Boston Celtics, and had to deal with the extra pressure of playing catch up the entire time.

What has taken place in Toronto over the years should mean nothing to Philadelphia at the moment since the playoffs are a completely different season, and the perfect opportunity for a fresh start.

If the Sixers were to win Game 1 on the road, it would set an early tone over how difficult of a series Philadelphia is ready to make this for Toronto, all while making a statement in regards to having what it takes to defeat the Raptors.

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Obviously, a win in Game 1 on the road will be far from easy since the Raptors are the No. 2 seed for a reason, but also this is what the Sixers have been preparing for all these months, so expect them to be ready to go come tip-off.