NBA Playoffs 2012: 4 Predictions for the Philadelphia 76ers

The Philadelphia 76ers are one win away from advancing past the first round of the playoffs, an accomplishment they haven't achieved since beating the New Orleans Hornets in 2003.

They have played very well as of late but also have had a lot of luck and good fortune on their side, too. Chicago's Derrick Rose got hurt late in Game 1 when he didn't need to be in the game and Joakim Noah is day-to-day for the rest of the series after getting hurt in Game 3. The Sixers won't have to see Rose again, as he is out for the playoffs.

If the Sixers advance, they will play the winner of the Boston-Atlanta series, and they went 3-1 combined against those teams this year.

It is a great time to be a Philadelphia sports fan, and here are four predictions for the 76ers for the rest of the playoffs.

Sixers Will Advance Past the First Round This Season

This series looked to go the Bulls' way until fate had other ideas. Up 12 with 1:10 remaining the fourth quarter in the first game, the Bulls coaching staff made a miscue and left MVP Derrick Rose in the game.

Rose missed 28 games this season due to injury, and the coaches failed to protect their valuable asset by not benching him. He ended up tearing his right ACL on a phantom play driving to the basket, thus sidelining him for the rest of the playoffs.

Joakim Noah was also hurt in Game 3 and is day-to-day for the series.

The Sixers won Games 2, 3 and 4, thus take a commanding 3-1 lead in this best-of-seven series. The Sixers only need one win in three tries to advance past the Bulls and become only the fifth eighth seed in the NBA to knock off a No. 1 seed.

Sixers Will Advance Past the Second Round

The Sixers should get past the Bulls, and when they do they will play the winner of the Boston-Atlanta series.

They went 3-1 combined against those teams this past season and looked dominant in those three victories. They beat a hot Atlanta team at home and at their place and manhandled Boston at the Wells Fargo Center.

Personally, I will be rooting for a Philly-Atlanta series because as much as I would love to see Boston get beat by Philly, truthfully, it is very experienced and talented and would give the Sixers fits. However, I think the Sixers would beat whomever they played, but Atlanta would be the easier opponent because it is nearly not as good as Boston.

Sixers Will Advance Past the Conference Finals

The Sixers should easily beat their second-round opponent, be it Boston or Atlanta. They went 3-1 combined against those teams this season and have seen consistent success over the past few seasons against them.

If the Sixers make it to the conference finals—and I believe they will—they should meet the winner of the Miami-New York and Orlando-Indiana series. Right now, Miami has a 3-1 lead over New York, as does Indiana have a 3-1 lead over Orlando. I believe Miami will make it to the conference finals.

If this is the case, it will pit the Sixers against their fiercest rival of the past two seasons, the Miami Heat. They have gone the past 11 regular-season games against the Heat without a win, but I think they would win a series against them in the playoffs.

The Sixers would be riding a wave of momentum from their unexpected rise in the playoffs and would play the Miami Heat very tough. It should be a very different Sixers team in terms of mental makeup than the one that has lost to the Heat several times over. It would be a back-and-forth series, but I think the Sixers would prevail in seven games.

Sixers Will Win the NBA Championship

Since 1983, only two teams have won championships in the city of Philadelphia. That would be the 1983 Sixers and the 2008 Phillies.

The 2012 Sixers look to join that group of teams when they win the NBA championship this year. I predicted they would win their way through the East over Boston/Atlanta and Miami.

They will have to face a very good Western Conference opponent—most likely either Oklahoma City, San Antonio or Los Angeles—but I believe they have what it takes to win against anyone.

When the Sixers started off the year 20-9, they surprised nearly everyone. No one expected them to be this good and they were underappreciated and underrated because they were off everyone's radar. No one really knows what will happen, but as a nearly-lifelong Sixers fan, I believe they have what it takes to win an NBA championship this season.