By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The Philadelphia 76ers matched their 2015-16 win total with a win over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday and they now have a better record than the Miami Heat and the Nets. The team has made some pretty big improvements from last season, but the main difference is the presence of rookie center, Joel Embiid. The 7-foot-2 native of Cameroon had another 20 point effort on Sunday and following the game, he brought up the Sixers chances of making the postseason.
"I think we've improved a lot. We've been playing good basketball, we've been winning games. I know we're like seven or eight games out of the playoffs…so, uh…that's funny," Embiid said with a smirk after Sunday's win in Brooklyn. "So, we have a chance, we're learning, we're growing together, learning how to play with each other…it's just going great now."
Embiid, 22, is a clear cut favorite for Rookie of the Year at this point, leading all first year players in scoring (19.4), rebounds (7.3) and blocked shots (2.4). Philadelphia has been somewhat hot lately, winning three of their last five games. That being said, those victories came against Brooklyn, Minnesota and Denver, who have a combined record of 33-77. The Sixers did almost steal a win against the Celtics, but nonetheless, the rookie phenom looks at the playoff picture regularly and thinks the team is making the right steps in the learning process.
"I look at it, I mean, we're like seven or eight games from eighth place, so I think that's a goal. I think we have a chance, we've been hot lately, won three out of four lately, so I look at it and I think we have a chance."
The Sixers, if they do have a chance at postseason play, have a good test ahead of them with the Knicks on Wednesday, Hornets on Friday and Wizards on Saturday, all teams that are ahead of them in the conference.
