Spike Eskin: 'The 76ers will win this series'

Despite Monday night's gut wrenching loss and a 0-2 series deficit, Spike Eskin still believes the Philadelphia 76ers will win their first-round playoff series over the New York Knicks.

"From last night, which was an imperfect game that had a lot of mistakes from a lot of people, at the end of the game I thought to myself—they battled," Eskin said at the beginning of Tuesday's 94WIP Afternoon Show with Ike Reese and Jack Fritz. "[Maxey] was the offensive star on the 76ers and helped them battle back. They were down, it felt like the game was over, they were down seven, they got right back in it. Embiid is on basically one leg. By halftime he couldn't run without a limp and who knows what the hell is going on with his eye.

"All that said, the 76ers after these two games—two heartbreaking losses—have the two best players in the series. That's a fact. They are a better team, though they are down 0-2 to the New York Knicks, and that I believe is also a fact. They are not down 2-0 to the Celtics, they are not down 2-0 to the Nuggets. They are going to come back here on Thursday and they are going to win Game 3 and that is going to change the tide of this series. They are right there and the difference between being home and away will be everything. They will win Game 3, they will win Game 4, and I believe they will win the series."

Game 3 is Thursday night at the Wells Fargo Center. The Sixers are +340 to win the series on FanDuel Sportsbook.