Schedule and 2021-22 Results
Regular Season Records: Philadelphia 51-31, Toronto 48-34
Game 1 on Saturday, 16 April: Toronto loses at Philadelphia, 131-pts-111
Game 2 on Monday, 18 April: Toronto loses at Philadelphia, 112-pts-97
Game 3 on Wednesday, 20 April: Philadelphia wins at Toronto, 104-pts-101(OT)
Game 4 on Saturday, 23 April: Philadelphia loses at Toronto, 110-pts-102
Game 5 on Monday, 25 April: Toronto wins at Philadelphia, 103-pts-88
Game 6 on Thursday, 28 April: Philadelphia wins at Toronto, 132-pts-97

SERIES NOTES:

After Game 6: The Philadelphia 76ers visited and bested the Toronto Raptors 132-pts-97 to complete a 4-games-2 best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1503 victory. With the series 1503 win, the Philadelphia 76ers improve their best-of-7 NBA playoff series record to 23-29 overall and 6-5 in the Preliminary round. With the series 1503 loss, the Toronto Raptors see their best-of-7 NBA playoff series record fall to 9-10 overall and 5-5 in the Preliminary round. The win order for the victorious Philadelphia 76ers in series 1503 was WWWLLW: Series 1503 thus becomes the fourth NBA Preliminary-round series, the eleventh NBA series (all rounds), and the 26th MLB/NBA/NHL series (all rounds) to follow that win order to completion. The series 1503 loss by the Toronto Raptors ends their best-of-7 NBA Preliminary-round playoff series winning streak at five. In series 1503, the Philadelphia 76ers became the second consecutive NBA team in a best-of-7 playoff series to win Games 1-3, lose Games 4-5, and then win Game 6 by a huge margin (35 points in series 1503 Game 6): In series 1271, the Chicago Bulls defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 120-pts-66 in the 2015 NBA Preliminary round, thus winning their series via a WWWLLW win order and a 54-point Game 6 margin.

After Game 5: The Toronto Raptors visited and bested the Philadelphia 76ers 103-pts-88 to drop the Philadelphia 76ers best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL series 1503 lead to 3-games-2. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-2, the Philadelphia 76ers have a series record of 11-2 (with an active six-series winning streak) and a Game 6 record of 6-7. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-2, the Toronto Raptors have a series record of 0-4 and a Game 6 record of 2-2. Series 1503 becomes the first best-of-7 NBA playoff series to open with a 3-games-nil lead and to require Game 6 since series 1271, when the Chicago Bulls led and ultimately defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2015 NBA Preliminary round.

After Game 4: The Toronto Raptors hosted and defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 110-pts-102 to reduce the Philadelphia 76ers best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL series 1503 lead to 3-games-1. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-1, the Philadelphia 76ers have a series record of 13-2 (with an active eight-series winning streak) and a Game 5 record of 7-8. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-1, the Toronto Raptors have a series record of 0-2 and a Game 5 record of 1-1. The Toronto Raptors avert a sweep with their series 1503 Game 4 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.

After Game 3: The Philadelphia 76ers visited and topped the Toronto Raptors 104-pts-101(OT) to take a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1503 lead of 3-games-nil. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-nil, the Philadelphia 76ers have a series record of 7-0 and a Game 4 record of 4-3. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-nil, the Toronto Raptors have a series record of 0-3 and a Game 4 record of 0-3. With their series 1503 Game 3 loss, the Toronto Raptors become the 144th NBA team and the 382nd MLB/NBA/NHL team to fall behind 3-games-nil in a best-of-7 playoff series, and thus have the opportunity to become the sixth MLB/NBA/NHL team and the first NBA team to win Games 4-7 and the series. The Philadelphia 76ers trailed series 1503 Game 3 by ten points on the road at halftime, but rallied for the Game 3 victory in overtime: In the history of best-of-7 NBA playoff games before series 1503 Game 3, road teams trailing by ten points at halftime had a game record of 16-93 (.147) - so it is that the 76ers achieve a Grade-B comeback (.100 - .199) in series 1503 Game 3. Ironically, the previous NBA team to trail a best-of-7 NBA playoff game by ten points at halftime on the road and rally for the win was the Toronto Raptors (in series 1443, over the Boston Celtics in Game 3 of their 2020 NBA Quarterfinals series).

After Game 2: The Philadelphia 76ers hosted and bested the Toronto Raptors 112-pts-97 to take a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1503 lead of 2-games-nil. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 2-games-nil, the Philadelphia 76ers have a series record of 12-1 (with an active nine-series winning streak) and a Game 3 record of 7-6. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 2-games-nil, the Toronto Raptors have a series record of 1-6 and a Game 3 record of 4-3. Trailing a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 2-games-nil (as Toronto now does in series 1503), the Toronto Raptors achieved their sole series victory in series 1413, over the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2019 NBA Semifinals. In the history of best-of-7 NBA playoff series (beginning in 1947), home teams winning Games 1-2 both by a skunk (14 points or more) have a 46-4 (.920) series record.

After Game 1: The Philadelphia 76ers hosted and bested the Toronto Raptors 131-pts-111 to take a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1503 lead of 1-game-nil. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1-game-nil, the Philadelphia 76ers have a series record of 17-7 and a Game 2 record of 13-11. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1-game-nil, the Toronto Raptors have a series record of 5-8 and a Game 2 record of 6-7. In the history of best-of-7 NBA playoff series (1947-2021, inclusive), home teams winning Game 1 by 20 points (such as the Philadelphia 76ers did in series 1503) have a 1-3 series record.

Pre-series assessment: In the 2021-22 NBA regular season, the Philadelphia 76ers finished three games ahead of the Toronto Raptors. From 1947 through the 2021 NBA Finals round, when NBA teams led their best-of-7 playoff series opponents by three regular-season games, they have posted a best-of-7 playoff series record of 20-17 (.541) in those series against those opponents. MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1503 is the 52nd best-of-7 NBA playoff series for the Philadelphia 76ers, and the 19th for the Toronto Raptors. In best-of-7 NBA playoff series, the Philadelphia 76ers have an all-rounds series record of 22-29, a Preliminary-round series record of 5-5, and a Game 1 record of 24-27, while the Toronto Raptors have an all-rounds series record of 9-9, a Preliminary-round series record of 5-4 (with an active five-series winning streak in the Preliminary round), and a Game 1 record of 5-13. Series 1503 is the third best-of-7 NBA playoff series meeting between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Toronto Raptors. In their previous two best-of-7 NBA playoff series meetings, Philadelphia defeated Toronto in series 838 (in the 2001 NBA Quarterfinals), while Toronto defeated Philadelphia in series 1410 (in the 2019 NBA Quarterfinals).