The Sixers dropped their final game of the season to Orlando, while the Miami Heat beat the Hawks setting up a first round series between the two. The Heat swept the Sixers this season with three wins by an average of about 10 points. The closest the Sixers came was 99-90 Heat win in Miami on November 26th.
The full Eastern conference playoff pairings are as follows.
#1 Chicago Bulls vs #8 Indiana Pacers - Bulls went 3-1 vs Indy this year.
#2 Miami Heat vs #7 Philadelphia 76ers - Heat swept the Sixers this season
#3 Boston Celtics vs #6 New York Knicks - Celtics swept the season series
#4 Orlando Magic vs # 5 Atlanta Hawks - The Hawks led the season series 3-1.
The 2011 NBA Playoffs will begin on Saturday April 16, 2011. The Sixers will be in Miami for the first two games of the series. The Flyers will play at Wells Fargo Center on Saturday, but aren't scheduled to be back in town until next Friday.
Last year, teams who played game one on Saturday wouldn't play game three until Thursday or Friday of the following week. Teams that started on Sunday would play game three the next Saturday. Either would work for the Sixers, but starting on Sunday would likely allow them to play in Philadelphia on each of the Flyers' off days (Saturday & Monday).