Philadelphia 76ers: Must-Win Games Left on the Schedule

Despite a strong start to the season, the Philadelphia 76ers find themselves three games behind the Boston Celtics for the Atlantic Division lead. They're currently tied with the New York Knicks for the No. 7 seed in the East, with a 1.5-game lead over the Milwaukee Bucks.

The playoffs are not a certainty for the Sixers anymore. 

They have 10 games left and eight of them are on the road. They finish the season with a five-game road trip.

The good news for them is that six of their final 10 games come against atrocious teams in the bottom third of the Eastern Conference.

These are absolute must-win games for the Sixers. Let's take a look at these games. 

April 10: At New Jersey

This will be the first of three matchups between the Philadelphia 76ers and the New Jersey Nets. Thirty percent of the games remaining on Philadelphia's schedule are against the Nets. 

These are games the Sixers absolutely have to win because of how weak the Nets are as a team. They're a 21-37 team without much to play for. Their most important big man, Brook Lopez, is out for the season and because of that, the Sixers athleticism should be able to dominate the Nets. 

This should also be a de facto home game for the Sixers considering the close proximity between the two cities. 

April 11: At Toronto

The Toronto Raptors may look like an easy opponent on paper, but this is the second game of a back-to-back situation. 

This is definitely a team the Sixers can handle if they remain focused throughout the ballgame and use their physicality and aggressiveness to stifle the Raptors offense. Toronto isn't going anywhere this season and this a team the Sixers have to beat in order to improve their playoff chances. 

April 13: New Jersey

This is the second game of three against the New Jersey Nets.

It's definitely a trap game as the Philadelphia 76ers might be looking ahead to their next game, which is at Orlando against Dwight Howard and the Magic. 

The Sixers must be focused on the task at hand, rather than look ahead. This is a team that is inferior to them and their defense should be able to stifle Deron Williams and the Nets offense. 

After all, if the Sixers can't beat a team like the Nets, they don't really deserve to make the playoffs. 

April 18: At Cleveland

Notice the trend here?

These are all sub-.500 teams that the Sixers need to defeat. If the Sixers beat all the non-playoff teams left on their schedule and split their games against the teams that'll make the playoffs, they should be in good shape.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have improved from last season, but they are 17 games under the .500 mark. This is also the first game of the season-ending five-game road trip for the Sixers so it's important for them to get off on a great start.  

April 23: At New Jersey

The final game of three against the New Jersey Nets is also sort of a trap game. The Philadelphia Sixers play at Milwaukee two nights after this game so they might look past the Nets a little bit. 

However, this game means just as much as any other game. It's one win in the standings and if the Sixers can sweep the Nets in the next three games, there will be less pressure on them when they play the Bucks. 

April 25: At Milwaukee

As mentioned in the introductory slide, the Milwaukee Bucks trail the Philadelphia Sixers by 1.5 games in the standings. If the Sixers can take care of their inferior opponents in the next eight games, they could expand that lead.

However, if the gap remains close between the two teams, this will be a huge game for the Sixers. This is the penultimate game of the season and if the Sixers can win it, they could actually secure a playoff spot. 

April 26: At Detroit

It's too early to tell how important the last game of the season will be for the Philadelphia 76ers. 

That being said, it's pretty obvious that if they don't have a spot locked up by the last day of the season or if they have a chance to win the Atlantic, this game is definitely a must-win. 

The Detroit Pistons are another lottery team that will have nothing to play for in the last two weeks of the season. Playing focused basketball should give the Sixers the "W."