The Process in Philadelphia has taken another significant step as the 76ers comfortably advanced to the second round of the playoffs after beating the Miami Heat.

The Sixers saw off the Heat in just five games and are the only team in the Eastern Conference to progress so far.

They've come such a long way from the team they were over the last couple of years and many see it as a huge surprise that they're still competing at this stage of the season.

Philly won just 10 games in the 2015-16 campaign and came close to tying the 1972-73 76ers for the worst record in NBA history.

But after years of 'tanking' and languishing in mediocrity, the decision to "Trust The Process" is bearing fruit this year as they are now a serious threat in the east.

Just to make it to the playoffs this season is a success after everything they've been through but with the talent they have on their roster, they're not prepared to just make up the numbers.

In Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, they have two future superstars who will be perennial All-Star and All-NBA players.

Before the start of the campaign, the pair declared that they would make it to the postseason and they delivered on their promise.

Embiid believes setting the bar high helped to create a winning culture in Philadelphia again.

"Just setting the expectations high," Embiid said when asked what has changed this year, per ESPN's Ramona Shelburne.

"If I go out there and put it in the media we're going to make the playoffs and my teammates see that, that's my way of being a leader. I'm not going to go out there and say that we're going to go to the playoffs and not be there for my teammates.

"If my teammates know that Joel went out and said we gotta make the playoffs, then we actually do have to make the playoffs."

This explains why the center is regularly setting big goals for his team publicly and that hasn't changed now that they're in the playoffs either.

He recently stated that "their time is now" and believes they can make it to the NBA Finals.

"We have a chance," he said. "We have a good chance."

The sky is the limit for this talented young Sixers team and although the finals may be a stretch at this stage, there's no doubt that they are primed to be one of the best teams in the east for years to come.

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