76ers vs. Heat: James Harden must find vintage form for Philadelphia to survive until Joel Embiid returns

76ers vs. Heat: James Harden must find vintage form for Philadelphia to survive until Joel Embiid returns

The Philadelphia 76ers came into their second-round opener against the Miami Heat on Monday with one realistic avenue to victory: James Harden had to be the best player on the floor. Perhaps he didn’t need to score 30 or 40 points, but he needed to be the best player on the floor, creating offense for himself and teammates at a dominant clip. 

That didn’t come close to happening. Harden finished with 16 points on 13 shots in Philadelphia’s 106-92 defeat in Game 1. He tallied as many turnovers (five) as assists. Two possessions, which actually accounted for 40 percent of Harden made buckets, tell a pretty accurate tale of the uphill battle scoring has become for Harden, particularly against an elite defense. 

With just under three minutes remaining in the first quarter, Harden found himself isolated on Tyler Herro at the top. As Mark Jones like to say, he played with his food for a few dribbles before hitting a step-back 3 to cut Miami’s lead to seven. 

With Duncan Robinson out of the rotation for Game 1, Miami offered just two defenders to possibly target: Herro and Max Strus, and Herro is by far the weakest link. If Harden was ever going to get a favorable one-on-one matchup, it was here, against Herro, and he didn’t even try to beat him off the dribble. He went to the step-back 3. He made it. Good for him. He’s not going to make enough of those to beat, or even moderately threaten, a team as good as the Heat. 

Understand, there’s nuance to consider here. Take a look at Victor Oladipo showing himself near the elbow to Harden’s left while his man, Matisse Thybulle, stands uncovered in the corner. This is the problem non-shooters pose. Oladipo is ready to pounce if

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2022 NBA trade deadline: Sixers, Nets plan to discuss a Ben Simmons for James Harden deal, per report

2022 NBA trade deadline: Sixers, Nets plan to discuss a Ben Simmons for James Harden deal, per report

It sounds as though the Philadelphia 76ers may not have to wait until the offseason to trade disgruntled star Ben Simmons after all. Recent reports suggested that the Sixers wanted to wait until more star players were available this summer before exploring a trade centered around Simmons, but The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported on Friday that the Brooklyn Nets are open to discussing a trade ahead of the deadline where James Harden would be sent to Philly in exchange for Simmons.

This is a reverse from recent reports suggesting that Brooklyn did not plan on listening to any trade offers for Harden leading up to the deadline. But according to Charania, there’s a sense of urgency within the Nets’ organization this season, as they view it as a “critical year in Kevin Durant’s prime.” This report comes at a time when the Nets aren’t playing their best basketball. Durant is currently sidelined with a sprained MCL, and during that time Brooklyn has gone just 2-7 and is currently on a six-game losing streak. 

The Nets view a potential Simmons-for-Harden swap as an opportunity to get Brooklyn more depth, with Seth Curry, Tyrese Maxey and Matisse Thybulle all being potential add-ons to the deal. However, the Sixers reportedly would not include Maxey in a deal for Harden, per CBS Sports’ Michael Kaskey-Blomain. Philadelphia has been resistant in the past to trade Maxey, most recently when the team looked to acquire Harden originally from the Rockets. But with Joel Embiid playing at an MVP-level again, and the Sixers climbing up to the No. 3 spot in the Eastern Conference with a 31-20 record, Philadelphia clearly wants to take advantage of this season and almost certainly will be a piece that the Nets ask for in any return for Harden.

Simmons has

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