The Philadelphia 76ers get an opportunity to move up in the standings while the host Miami Heat attempt to avoid moving down when the Eastern Conference playoff hopefuls go head-to-head on Monday.
The seventh-place 76ers (41-33) are within a half-game of the sixth-place Atlanta Hawks (42-33) with eight games remaining. Sixth place is important in that it’s an automatic playoff qualifier, whereas the seventh-place team must navigate through the play-in tournament to get into the playoffs.
By virtue of a 4-0 sweep in the season series, the Hawks hold the tiebreaker over the 76ers, who have one game in hand. The clubs do not play again in the regular season.
Meanwhile, the Heat (39-36) remain in the running to catch both the Hawks and 76ers, as well as the eighth-place Orlando Magic (39-35).
But of immediate concern for the Heat, who lost 135-118 at Indiana on Sunday, is their current ninth-place tie with Charlotte (39-36). The ninth-place team will open the play-in portion of the postseason with a home game against the 10th-place club, with the loser eliminated.
Miami won the season series 3-1 over the Hornets, giving the Heat the tiebreaker.
The 76ers will be the hotter and better-rested team entering their matchup with the Heat. Philadelphia opened a three-game trip with a 118-114 win at Charlotte on Saturday, then traveled to Miami, where the 76ers enjoyed a day off.
The rest likely will allow 76ers coach Nick Nurse to have his three top players — Joel Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey — on the floor for the same time for the second game in a row. Maxey returned from a strained finger tendon to play 43 minutes at Charlotte and collected 26 points, eight assists and seven rebounds.
With Embiid pouring in 29 points and George posting a double-double with 26 points and 13 rebounds, the 76ers had the trio on the floor together for the first time since Jan. 29.
Embiid, who missed 13 straight games with a strained right oblique before returning last Wednesday against Chicago, says it’s time to stop worrying about his availability on a game-by-game basis.
“Feeling good,” Embiid, a seven-time All-Star center and league MVP in the 2022-23 season, told reporters in Charlotte. “Obviously ramping up. Just got to keep playing basketball and get in better shape. We need everybody we can get. We got to win every single game.”
While the 76ers have won two in a row and four of five, the Heat’s loss Sunday in Indianapolis was the seventh in their last eight outings.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said there’s plenty of time left to turn things back in a positive direction.
“We’ve shown toughness throughout the season,” he told reporters on Sunday. “I know our guys want this. We’re going to go to Miami and figure out how to get this next one.”
The teams have split their first two head-to-heads, meaning the season-series tie-breaker will be decided in Monday’s final matchup.
Both previous meetings were in Philadelphia, where Embiid was sidelined for a 127-117 Miami win in November. He had 26 points and 11 rebounds in the rematch, a 124-117 victory for the 76ers in February.
