Well, this is good news.
Football season is over. And quarterback Carson Wentz, once considered to be the cornerstone of the Philadelphia Eagles franchise, is expected to be traded soon.
But thanks to the 76ers, Philadelphia sports fans have no need to despair. The Sixers are 17-7 and own the best record in the Eastern conference. A busy offseason that brought change across the entire organization is bearing some bountiful fruit.
Daryl Morey, the team’s new President of Basketball Operations, seems to have the franchise headed in the right direction. New coach Doc Rivers has the team connected and cohesive. And the roster that was rebuilt to provide some outside shooting opposite stars Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons seems to be working fine.
So things are trending up for the 76ers heading into Tuesday’s game with the Sacramento Kings. FOX Bet has Philadelphia third in Eastern Conference futures at +500, but has boosted the price to +700. Milwaukee (+320) and Brooklyn (+155) are still the favorites despite worse records.
In terms of NBA Championship futures, the Sixers are further back, with the Lakers favored to repeat at a boosted price of +280. Philadelphia is currently fifth at +1600, behind the Lakers, Nets (+333), Clippers (+550), and the Bucks (+600).
76ers are 4.5-point favorites in Sacramento Tuesday
Philadelphia tips off against the Sacramento Kings at 10 p.m. Tuesday. Before the game begins, it might be a good idea to take a look at PlayPennsylvania’s Sixers betting guide to refresh your memory on one of the league’s best teams.
Philadelphia has been red-hot at home this season (11-2) and almost mediocre on the road (6-5).
A sampling of websites also reveals that Philadelphia 13-10-1 against the spread this season and 13-11 in terms of their game totals, with the Over holding a slight advantage.
In Tuesday’s game, FOX Bet started with the 76ers as 4.5-point favorites but that moved to -5.5 by press time with a moneyline price of -225. Sacramento is priced at +180. The game’s over/under is set at 230.5.
FOX Bet also has alternate spreads and totals available. There are also same-game parlays, first-half odds, and a variety of winning margin wagers. Once the game tips off, there should also be live betting options at a number of Pennsylvania sportsbooks.
76ers vs. Kings updated game odds at PA sportsbooks
Sixers West Coast road trip begins with tonight’s game
As noted in a USA Today SixersWire article, Tuesday’s game marks the beginning of a four-stop Western Conference road trip, with matchups against the Kings, Trail Blazers, Suns and Jazz.
“We’re going to face some really good teams, and we have to be ready,” Tobias Harris told USA Today. “We have to be dominant throughout this whole trip and continue to progress night after night. We’re just looking to really progress, every single game, and then that’s really the focus.”
Those are the words of a player focused on an increasingly bright future, and a team determined to keep trending upward. The season is not even half over yet. So it’s way too early to guess how it all might end.
But for now, there is plenty of good news.
Image via Dreamstime.
