The Philadelphia 76ers are at home on Sunday to close out their regular season by hosting the Milwaukee Bucks. They will look to close out their regular season with a win as they prepare for the postseason and hope for some luck with the Magic and Raptors games.
If all falls in place, the Sixers could wind up with the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and avoid the play-in tournament. The Bucks will be happy to just get this year over with and start changing the franchise for the better.
Who: Milwaukee Bucks (32-49) at Philadelphia 76ers (44-37)
When: 6:00 p.m. EST
Where: XFinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia, Pa.
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, NBA League Pass
The Sixers' season, which at one point showed real promise as the health and play of some of its biggest stars came together, will end much like it began. Joel Embiid is sidelined, Nick Nurse has to figure out a game plan for a group led by Tyrese Maxey, and the squad will rely on what depth they have.
Maxey will finish the year with arguably the most productive season in his young career, despite having to battle injuries and high usage throughout the year.
This year has gone anything but as planned for Doc Rivers and the Bucks. The discourse around Giannis Antetokounmpo is certainly the loudest noise coming out of Milwaukee, and injuries have derailed their season as well. Their injury list for today's matchup leaves Cormac Ryan, the 27-year-old rookie with nine games of experience and 11.9 points per game, as their leading scorer.
Since the Bucks will be without the majority of their top talent, one would think that the Sixers would have an easy game ahead of them, but if the Sixers can win, there's still a remote chance they'll be able to capture the sixth seed in the conference and avoid the play-in tournament altogether.
Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe will provide some highlights and get the team moving against arguably one of the worst lineups that an NBA team will put on the court this season. The hope is that they'll get out in front by a margin large enough that the coach can go as deep as possible on the bench and give his stars some rest.
That means a lot of second-half Kyle Lowry minutes, and while it would be great for the veteran to finish his career in his hometown and maybe have himself a game that reminds us of who he once was, then I'm all for it tonight.
Tonight, you'll get a good look at the Sixers long-term future with Edgecombe, Maxey, Justin Edwards, and Dominick Barlow all playing big roles, but the final regular season game of a man who's played almost 1,200 games, scored more than 16,000 points, and won a title in the league while showing class, leadership, and talent.
If anything, Kyle Lowry should be allowed to go out on a high note and give the Sixers fans something to be happy about. Take the time, watch the game, appreciate some of the young talent the Sixers have for the future, and show appreciation for a talented, homegrown player who's dedicated his life to the game of basketball.
Sixers 117, Bucks 103
More importantly, Kyle Lowry - 16-plus points
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