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NBA Playoffs 2018: Power ranking the first round matchups

By Paul Centopani

OAKLAND, CA - MAY 4: Close up view of the NBA Playoffs logo before the game between the Golden State Warriors and the Utah Jazz during Game Two of the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2017 NBA Playoffs on May 4, 2017 at ORACLE Arena in Oakland, California. 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. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - MAY 4: Close up view of the NBA Playoffs logo before the game between the Golden State Warriors and the Utah Jazz during Game Two of the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2017 NBA Playoffs on May 4, 2017 at ORACLE Arena in Oakland, California. 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. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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76ers, Heat
MIAMI, FL – FEBRUARY 27: Ben Simmons /

4. No. 3 Philadelphia 76ers (52-30) vs. No. 6 Miami Heat (44-38)

The Process is bearing fruit. Over the past six months, Philadelphia transformed from a fun up-and-comer to a team nobody wants to play. The 76ers burst into the playoffs on the heels of a 16-game winning streak. If momentum exists in the NBA, then they are a bulldozer rolling downhill.

It’s the first foray into the postseason for their two young phenoms, but I don’t see Ben Simmons or the Phantom of the Process shying from the big lights. Joel Embiid is ruled out for Game 1 (and possibly more), but half of Philadelphia’s win streak came in his absence. They have a strong group of veterans to lean. Plus, Markelle Fultz, fresh off becoming the youngest player to get a triple-double, can be an X-factor off the bench.

Eric Spoelstra will put Miami in the best position to win, but this team feels middle-of-the-road and ultimately forgettable. The Heat have a glut of good players, but they’re more like third or fourth-tier guys playing second-tier roles.

Come for the potential emergence of Simmons and Embiid, stay for the likely social media #PettyWars between Embiid and Hassan Whiteside.

Prediction: It’s the Year of Philly. Sixers in five.

Game 1 between the 76ers and Heat will be at 8:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 14. ESPN will have the national telecast from the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.

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