The Philadelphia 76ers were making interesting plans for the 2020 NBA playoffs, as while they are securely in the fray, they figured they had to do something a little different in order to make some real noise. As some BetAnySports customers know, they shifted things in the lineup in order to take some of the playmaking burden off Ben Simmons and go "smaller" at the same time.

But now they are faced with having to go without Simmons, so it's more improvisation for coach Brett Brown as this team prepares to go up against the Portland Trail Blazers in a game that is set to begin at 6:35 PM ET at the Visa Athletic Center on the campus of the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex near Orlando.

The rationale behind a lineup adjustment was motivated by Simmons' versatility, but at the same time by his inability to be a real threat from the outside. He vowed to shoot more three-pointers in camp, but he was still a long, long way from being dangerous. Meanwhile, Brown knows that he had a point guard named Shake Milton who came up the hard way, and could drill long-range shots (45.7%). So Simmons was shifted to power forward, with Milton installed at the point.

Initial returns weren't bad, and then there was some personal tension between Milton and Simmons. And then that sort of became moot, as Simmons suffered a dislocation of his left patella. It is unclear when he can play again, but the Sixers (42-27 SU, 29-36-4 ATS) are without him for the Sunday game.

There is a void in the lineup because of Simmons' ability to penetrate and attack the hoop, as well as his defense. He leads the league in steals. So they are scrambling around for Plan B.

In the NBA betting odds that have been posted on this game by the folks at BetAnySports, the Blazers are favored:

Portland Trail Blazers -3
Philadelphia 76ers +3

Over 229 points -110
Under 229 points -110

Portland played on Saturday, losing 122-117 to the Clippers. They had scored 75 points in the first half and and led by one point going into the fourth quarter. But Damian Lillard, who has been superb in the bubble - even after he considered not even showing up at all - missed two crucial free throws late. And he had to take some trash talking from L.A.'s Paul George, who enjoyed pushing the Blazers closer to what might ultimately wind up being a state of elimination.

As of this moment, the Blazers (32-39 SU, 30-38-3 ATS) would be the #9 team in the West and in position to play against Memphis in a two-game play-in series for the eighth and final West playoff spot. But that picture changes every day. They are only a half-game ahead of Phoenix and San Antonio.

But the Blazers are not a bad candidate for revival. They are strong up front, and Jusuf Nurkic, perhaps unexpectedly (after an injury) found his form rat6her quickly. Zach Collins is back from injury. Carmelo Anthony, written off by many, has really had his moments, including 21 points in Saturday's game. The rotation has been fortified a little with the likes of Gary Trent Jr. (22 points vs. the Clippers).

The Sixers may have to go big in order to counter what Portland has. That entails putting Al Horford into the lineup at power forward. That isn't what Brown wanted to do; in fact, he had benched Horford because the chemistry just wasn't there with Joel Embiid alongside him. Ultimately, this means the 76ers are deviating from the recently-installed plan. That, together with a more urgent situation with Portland, pushes us toward the Blazers in this NBA encounter.

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