PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The Washington Wizards appear to be all but officially finished in their playoff series with the 76ers.
Just don't tell that to Doc Rivers and his team.
The Sixers will go for the sweep when they play Game 4 of their series in Washington on Monday night. After having been dominated in Games 2 and 3, it appears the Wizards have little chance of keeping their season alive on Monday.
However, this is an elimination game, and Rivers knows his squad will face a team desperate to save its season.
"They're going to give their best," said Rivers. "They're going to come out and they're going to play with an amazing amount of energy, and you have to match that. You have to match it or go past their energy. We can't have a show up game, meaning just show up. You've got to get ready to play your game."
If the Sixers play the type of game they have played throughout the series, they can begin to make plans for the second round. The team averaged 126 points in the first three games of this series. In Game 3, Joel Embiid poured home 36 points while the Sixers finished with 17 three-pointers. The offense is clicking on all cylinders and appears unstoppable in this round.
"It's overall selection of shots and when to pass," Rivers said. "If you've figured out as a team in general, not just Joel, when to shoot and when to pass, when to cut and when to drive, if you can get your team to have that rhythm and be good at that, you're going to be a good offensive team."
Related
Embiid continues to put together spectacular performances. Washington coach Scott Brooks compared Embiid to Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon. Rivers sees parts of Olajuwon and several other Hall of Famers in Embiid's game.
"I think Joel has a little bit of all those guys," said Rivers. "The footwork of Hakeem and (Kevin) McHale. The fadeaway, the shooting of (Patrick) Ewing. He puts a lot of work into his game."
The Sixers will look to put their work into their game on Monday and finish off the Wizards. After the Sixers won Games 2 and 3, Rivers reminded his team they haven't won anything until they capture the fourth game of a series. Now, it's up to the players to keep their focus when they take the court on Monday.
"We just have to keep playing," Rivers said. "I think that's the key for us. It's just our focus, our execution, and then all the other stuff falls into place."