If we imagine the NBA as a shelf filled with different books, then the Golden State Warriors and the Philadelphia 76ers are the bookends.
The defending champion Warriors enter the matchup with a league leading 42-4 record while the Sixers come in with an awful 7-40 record. The Warriors are looking like a team that could break the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls’ single-season win record while their opposition looks like it might actually do worse than it’s 18 win season last year. They’re on completely opposite ends of the Association’s spectrum.
How did this happen?
It was only a few years ago that the playoffs seemed like a dream to the Warriors, who constantly found themselves in the draft lottery.