The Philadelphia 76ers play host to the Brooklyn Nets at Wells Fargo Center on Thursday.

The Nets (38-37) come into this matchup losing four of their last six games, as that has put them in contention to fall out of the playoffs altogether. In fact, the Miami Heat are just 2.5 games behind the Nets in ninth and the Charlotte Hornets are just 3.5 games behind in 10th. Brooklyn currently sits in sixth, with the Detroit Pistons half-a-game behind in seventh and the Orlando Magic one game back in eighth. That means five teams are battling for three spots and the form of these other clubs has to have Nets fans somewhat concerned. The fact that Brooklyn is even in playoff contention is an achievement in its own right though, as many experts had this team pegged to finish bottom five at the beginning of the season. That says a lot about the development of this team, as they're in good hands for the future with players like D'Angelo Russell, Jarrett Allen and Caris Levert running the show.

The Sixers (47-27) come into this matchup losing two-straight, with both those fixtures coming on the road. It's teams that Philly should have beat too, as those defeats came at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic. The play away from home has been a nightmare all season long, with Philly owning an 18-18 road record. They do sit with a 27-9 home record though and that's definitely been one of the strengths of this team. Prior to this mini two-game slide, the Sixers won six-straight games, which catapulted themselves all the way up to third in the east. That's where they sit now, two games up on the Indiana Pacers in fourth. That means homecourt advantage in the first-round is a near guarantee at this point and Philly fans have to be thankful for that after decades of futility.

This is the fourth and final meeting between these teams, with Brooklyn winning two of three thus far. The defense has been lacking in this series, with the winner scoring at least 122 points in all three matchups while the loser has scored at least 124 points in two of three.