The 76ers and their fans received a splash of salt in a recently opened wound ahead of Sunday's win-or-go-home contest at TD Garden.
Thursday proved to be a very frustrating evening for Philadelphia, as it squandered a chance to punch an Eastern Conference finals ticket on its home floor. The 76ers couldn't pull out a Game 6 win despite limiting the Celtics to 95 points and watching Jayson Tatum play one of the worst games of his NBA career through three-and-a-half quarters.
The frustration coming out of the City of Brotherly Love surely reached a new level two hours before Game 7 tipoff due to a report from ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
"An interesting dynamic approaching Celtics-Sixers Game 7, per sources: NBA’s officiating game report shared with teams from Game 6 revealed a significant disparity: 13 officiating errors disadvantaging 76ers to four disadvantaging Boston. Those can include calls and non calls," the trusted NBA insider tweeted.
It would be a stretch to say this officiating disparity was the main reason why the 76ers didn't come out on top in Game 6. That said, winning in the postseason is an arduous challenge in its own right and it's all the more difficult when the referring veers on lopsided.
Philadelphia can't afford to dwell on this recent development, though, as a series win over perhaps the NBA's best is still well within its grasp.
