76ers’ Nick Nurse Talks Close Games in Knicks Series: ‘I’ve Decided Nothing Matters’

zach bacharContributor IMay 3, 2024

Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images

Philadelphia 76ers head coach Nick Nurse joked with reporters about the team’s close first-round playoff series against the New York Knicks on Thursday.

“I have decided nothing matters,” Nurse said prior to Game 6, as each of the first five games between the two teams have come down to the wire.

PHLY Sixers @PHLY_SixersNick Nurse on weighing the different factors that have impacted this series:

“i have decided nothing matters”

🤣 pic.twitter.com/5WgiPu7Vj1

Although the 76ers earned a 125-114 win in Game 3, the other four contests in the series have all been decided by single-digit margins.

Strong individual performances haven’t been enough to keep each game from coming down to the wire, with Nurse referencing Joel Embiid’s 50-point performance in Game 3 as well as Jalen Brunson’s 47-point night during Game 4.

“They kill us on the glass, it goes down to the buzzer,” he said. “We kill them on the glass, it goes down to the buzzer. Joel scores 50, it goes down to the buzzer. Brunson scores 47, it goes down to the buzzer.”

While the Knicks entered the playoffs as the No. 2 seed and the 76ers at No. 7, just three games separated the two teams in the Eastern Conference standings. Both groups struggled with injuries throughout the regular season as well, with Embiid missing 43 games due to a meniscus injury while All-Star forward Julius Randle made 46 appearances for New York before undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery.

The Knicks hold a 3-2 series lead, although all three of their wins have occurred by seven points or less. The 76ers are coming off a narrow victory of their own, winning Game 5 in overtime after Tyrese Maxey hit a pair of incredible long-range shots to keep Philadelphia’s season alive.

Nurse’s squad will need two more victories in order to become the first team in franchise history to come back from a 3-1 series deficit. If one thing’s for certain, Game 6 in Philadelphia will be highly competitive. Tip-off is on Thursday at 9 p.m. ET.