New year, same story for the Sixers

For the 7th consecutive year, the Sixers made the playoffs. For the 7th consecutive year, the Sixers are 48 minutes away from having their playoff run end before the start of the Eastern Conference Finals.

It feels like Charlie Brown lining up that kick on Thanksgiving morning. Every year, we tell ourselves that eventually one of these years has to be different. Eventually, the vinegar will turn into wine.

Barring a comeback from down 3-1, 2024 will not be different. And no, Doc Rivers, a name now synonymous with blowing 3-1 leads, is not coaching the Knicks.

2024 will be remembered as the year they were outhustled and out worked. They’re losing to a team who wants it more.

Not that it should matter, but by almost any measure, the New York fans have wanted it more too. Knicks fans did not outnumber Sixers fans in South Philadelphia, but they were certainly more vocal.

“It’s disappointing,” Joel Embiid said of the New York fans who made their presence felt on Sunday at the Wells Fargo Center. “It kind of pisses me off.”

What’s disappointing is having the reigning league MVP score one point in the 4th quarter. He played 43 minutes on Sunday, he battled a torn meniscus, Bell's palsy and pushed his conditioning limits to give this team everything he has this season.

In the end, the story is the same: the Sixers looked horrible with him off the floor and his performance on the floor was not enough.

With every year that passes, the question of whether it’ll happen for this team looms larger and larger. Joel Embiid will be remembered for being as talented as they come, but the chances he’s remembered as a winner just got that much smaller.