The Sixers are far from proven right now. But they just might end up the East’s second-best team.

The 76ers are not proven.

They are playing well this regular season. They’ve done that before, only to choke in the postseason. Joel Embiid, as the NBA’s reigning MVP, is proven. But he’s typically injured in the postseason, where his numbers have declined. Tyrese Maxey is just getting started, so he’s still unproven. Tobias Harris’ play has been up and down. And the role players haven’t fully fit in with the team.

» READ MORE: Joel Embiid third behind Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James in NBA All-Star fan voting

Despite those factors, the Sixers (23-10) have the potential to be a very good team. I’m talking about finishing second in the Eastern Conference behind the Boston Celtics type of good team.

Sixers coach Nick Nurse has brought new defensive and offensive systems to Philly. With 33 games behind them, his squad and the Celtics (26-7) are the only teams with top-5 ratings in both offensive and defensive efficiency.

The Sixers take the conference’s third-best record into Friday’s game against the New York Knicks at the Wells Fargo Center. They are a game behind the second-place Milwaukee Bucks, who are 25-10 after Thursday’s 125-121 victory over the San Antonio Spurs. The Celtics, the league’s best team, are three games ahead of the Sixers.

Boston is playing every bit like a squad favored to win its first NBA title since 2008 and 18th overall.

But I’m not sold on Milwaukee, which has been up and down. Defensively, the Bucks are not great, ranking 21st in defensive efficiency. As a result, they try to outscore teams. They basically try to keep the game close so that All-Stars Damian Lillard or Giannis Antetokounmpo can try to take over at the end. On Thursday, they combined to score 25 of the Bucks’ final 26 points to squeak by a five-win Spurs team.

» READ MORE: Joel Embiid is selling his penthouse for $5.5 million. It comes with a pool, outdoor kitchen and more.

If the Sixers face them in the postseason, maybe you’ll have to give the Bucks, winners of the 2021 NBA title, the benefit of the doubt for what they’ve done in recent postseasons. But the Sixers are right there with Milwaukee. In fact, no one should be surprised if they overtake the Bucks in the standings and beat them in the postseason where it matters.

Both teams have standout duos. The Sixers are led by Embiid and Maxey, and Milwaukee runs through Antetokounmpo and Lillard. After that, Philly has a deeper talent pool than the Bucks.

The scary part is the Sixers still aren’t established yet because of new acquisitions and injuries. The new guys are still adapting to the system. So the expectation is the Sixers will get better with time.

“We certainly do have a lot of strengths. No doubt about that,” Nurse said. “I think we’ve done a good job of playing to those. I do think we got a pretty good veteran bench. That matters. That gets you through a lot of games. And those guys can pull off some of those grind-it-out, midweek on the road wins that maybe you can’t on some other teams without that kind of depth.”

Nurse noted that the Sixers will continue to see different schemes and concepts. He also believes the Sixers have a lot of room to improve.

» READ MORE: Sixers center Joel Embiid is going to miss games. The key is getting him to the playoffs healthy.

“I know everybody looks at me like I’m [nuts],” he said. “Joel’s still [ascending]. Tyrese is still [ascending]. There’s still a lot of room for those guys to continue to get better. So I think that’s exciting.

“And again, just continuing to find the right pieces around those guys. And what the second unit looks like is a continual work in progress.”

And we will have to see what happens before the Feb. 8 trade deadline. The Sixers could use their draft assets to get another player. Or they can wait for the buyout market to add a player of need.

But even if the Sixers don’t make a move, they could be built to compete with Milwaukee. The Bucks escaped with an 118-117 season-opening victory over the Sixers on Oct. 26 at the Fiserv Forum. Back then, Philly was dealing with the James Harden distraction and had yet to add key additions Nico Batum, Marcus Morris Sr., and Robert Covington from the Los Angeles Clippers in a trade for the disgruntled star.

The Sixers have been one of the league’s most consistent teams, winning 11 of their last 14 games. Meanwhile, the Bucks headed into Thursday’s game as losers of two straight and three of their last five.

Milwaukee’s three-time All-Star Khris Middleton has not played to the level he’s accustomed to. He averaged 14.7 points through 29 games, which is his lowest scoring output since averaging 14.7 during the 2016-17 season. On Thursday, he had 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting in the first half, only to sit out the second half.

The Celtics, however, are the NBA’s unquestioned best team.

They have the best starting five in the NBA in All-NBA wings in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, along with Kristaps Porziņģis, Jrue Holiday, and Derrick White. White and Holiday are the league’s best guard combination. Boston doesn’t have a lot of depth, but won’t need it in the playoffs when teams reduce rotations.

Meanwhile, the unproven and still-developing Sixers are making a strong case to be considered the second-best team in the conference and league overall.