To be serious title contenders, the Sixers will need the version of James Harden that they got Saturday night, writes Rich Hofmann of The Athletic. Facing one of the league’s best defenses, Harden turned in a performance reminiscent of his MVP days in Houston. He had 38 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists and led a fourth-quarter comeback as Philadelphia snapped the Bucks’ 16-game winning streak.
“That’s what I do, man,” Harden said. “I’m just very comfortable in those situations whether it’s playmaking, whether it’s scoring. I’ve been doing it for a long time.”
Harden has been in the news this week for his upcoming free agency and persistent rumors that he will strongly consider a return to the Rockets. Hofmann states that Harden has been playing at an All-Star level throughout the season and his immediate focus is helping Philadelphia get by the other top teams in the East.
There’s more on the Sixers:
- The team has two injury concerns coming out of Saturday’s game, Hofmann adds. Tobias Harris didn’t finish the game because of tightness in his left calf, while P.J. Tucker suffered back spasms and was moving gingerly in the locker room, according to Hofmann.
- Even though he didn’t play, Dewayne Dedmon was in uniform on Saturday night, per Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The veteran center signed with the Sixers on February 14 after agreeing to a buyout with the Spurs following a trade from the Heat. Dedmon is ready for a fresh start after the way his time in Miami ended, but hip soreness has delayed his debut with the Sixers. “At the end of the day, it’s not about motivation,” Dedmon said. “I got mental clarity. For myself, that’s the biggest thing that I need moving forward in my life and my career. I need mental clarity and stability. For me to get traded from there was my mental clarity and my stability.”
- Georges Niang has seen his playing time reduced recently because of a shooting slump, but he drained 5-of-6 shots from beyond the arc Saturday. Before the game, he told Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer that the best cure for a slump is to keep shooting. “I just got to get out there and let it fly,” Niang said. “I don’t know how many games it is now, but I’ve had the feeling of getting out there and being like, ‘Oh, I want to get my elbow tucked. I want to do this.’ But I’ve been shooting my whole life. I’ve just got to go out there and let it rip.”
Remember when people in here said the Nets win the trade. Lol
Not sure if you’ve ever seen Harden in the playoffs.
It ain’t pretty.
The beard is playing with the most dominant player in the NBA joel Emvp,I don’t see that in his prior playoff resume.
At the time, the Beard had been mailing it in, KD was often hurt, and Kyrie was hardly playing due to COVID rules, but they still had Kyrie and KD. There was still hope for Ben once he got back on the court and the talent is still there if he can recover enough physically and mentally to get his confidence back. KD and Kyrie [along with the Nets’ realistic title shot this year] are gone, but there’s a new star in town of whom I’m uncertain why the Sixers traded his draft rights to Phoenix when his mother was in the organization and he was a hometown hero in Philly coming off NCAA championships at Villanova. Plus, the Nets recouped a lot of the draft capital they lost in the first Harden deal.
I watched the whole gm. Especially watched Harden off the ball. He looks in better shape. I still see another gear for him. He was getting to the rim. I haven’t seen him do that consistently in Philly yet. He ran the team and looked to get his ast.
This Harden imo can even get better. He is leading the NBA in ast. This Harden makes them a contender for sure.
This was a statement gm for Sixers. They beat Bucks with their bench. And ended their winning streak. Sixers looked good.
The Sixers did look very good, and I definitely give them their due. I just cannot help but to ask myself, if can they consistently get that kind of play from their team in a game to game basis, or especially throughout the course of a 7 game series.
A HUGE key for their W was the 76ers playmaker getting to the foul line. Maxey, Harden, amd Embiid each combined to shoot almost THIRTY free-throws. Their ability to remain aggressive, while also only having a handful of turnovers was paramount to their success Saturday night.
I just don’t know how realistic it is that the 76ers can maintain those kind of numbers, also while shooting almost 50% from three..
We’ve seen James Harden show in spurts that he’s capable of reverting back to his old self on occasions, but then after a couple of excellent games, he follows them up with some lackadaisical performances where he just looks flat and disinterested.
I don’t know, it is just difficult to trust he can bring it as consistently as Embiid does, but that’s what the 76ers are going to HAVE TO get from him AND Maxey, if they’re to seize their opportunities and represent the East in the NBA Finals.
The thing about the Sixers is they are good enough to take 4/7 versus a great team, the problem is they are still more likely to drop 4/7 to such a team. Recent results show that. They’re almost at the level of a Boston/Milwaukee/Dallas just not quite. If they can figure out a better rotation and have everyone playing more consistently than they can flip the script.
Philly is far better than Dallas.
I just used Dallas because they played them recently and lost. You can consider I mean any number of top teams in the West.
Harden hasn’t been in max shape since Houston imo. He’s gotta know he doesn’t have many good yrs left. Yes I agree they have to do is all the time. But if you’re a Sixer fan. You have to like what you are seeing from Harden. And I’m not a Harden guy lol.
The Harden/Embiid pick-and-roll is down right nasty. when the 3s are falling the 76ers are lethal and can play with any team. They still need to tighten up their close-outs on defense, but playoffs usually means better D