MILWAUKEE — After scoring 19 points against the league’s best defense in the final 12 minutes, orchestrating a 14-point comeback on the road in the fourth quarter and embarking on a 16-game winning streak, James Harden has been pretty businesslike.
“I’ll do that, man,” Harden said. “I just feel very comfortable in these situations, whether it’s about playmaking or goals. I’ve been doing this for a long time.”
Harden has been playing at a high level for a long time and will end up in Springfield. But since training camp began in Charleston, SC, the biggest swing factor for the 2022-23 Philadelphia 76ers has remained the same: What gear can the 33-year-old guard, playing in his 14th NBA season, consistently achieve? How much does he basically have left in the tank?
The results were encouraging. Harden might not have been voted an All-Star, but both his numbers and his game were All-Star worthy. His main role is a playmaker who force-feeds Joel Embiid at the pick-and-roll. When prompted, there were enough flashes from the elite isolation scorer setting records in Houston to offer some hope.
Harden is judged by how he performs on the biggest stages. The postseason, the true litmus test, is over a month away. But as far as practice runs go, here was Harden’s performance on Saturday night: He finished with 38 points (11 of 26 from the field, 11 of 11 from the free throw line), 10 assists, two turnovers and nine rebounds in a thrilling 133-130 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
“I thought James made great decisions,” said Sixers coach Doc Rivers. “He was obviously a goalscorer tonight but he was also a point guard.”
The Sixers (41-22) have had their share of impressive wins. Some came when the team was undermanned, while others came against elite opponents. This one certainly fell into the latter category.
Consider this: Not only do the Bucks have the best defense in the league, but they shot 17 of 34 from the angle at the Fiserv Forum on Saturday. In a personal 20-point third quarter, Grayson Allen rained fire on the Sixers. There was no laddergate 2.0 this time as Giannis Antetokounmpo shot 16 of 18 off the line. Brook Lopez, probably the toughest two-way matchup for Embiid in the entire league, played the Sixers star to a relative tie.
The Sixers still found a way to win. They have played six times since the All-Star hiatus. Four of those were one-possession games in the dying seconds against playoff teams that split the Sixers. It’s been another week of quality, stressful basketball.
So what does this series of games mean?
“They’re important, I think, but they’re more fun,” Rivers said. “They matter because we were on the road, they played great, they had a streak, we broke the streak… so, fun game, competitive play. Both teams wanted the game.”
For better or worse, Rivers isn’t the type to dwell on wins or losses in the regular season. He added: “But you know, we got Indiana in two days. That’s what we’re going to focus on.”
But Saturday’s win is worth thinking about a little, as these two teams could face each other in the second round of the postseason. And the players surrounding the stars were an intriguing development in the Sixers’ win. Harden, Embiid and Tyrese Maxey combined for 95 points, and they were joined by a couple of unlikely faces in crucial time.
In the middle part of the game, the Sixers lost two starters. Tobias Harris left the game with a strain in his left calf, while PJ Tucker suffered from back spasms shortly after. Tucker moved cautiously in the dressing room after the game. The understaffed Sixers had to close with a different look. And it was Georges Niang and Jalen McDaniels who played 11 minutes each in the fourth quarter.
Niang has been a key contributor to the Sixers this season but has struggled lately. In his last 10 games leading up to Saturday, he hit 23 percent of his 3-pointers and just 33 percent of his field goals. In a triumphant small ball win over Miami, Niang received a DNP CD. But on Saturday he hit back hard with 5 of 6 shots from beyond the arc.
“Obviously, I didn’t do my job to the best of my ability at a high level,” Niang said. “But tonight was a good way to get back on track and you just want to build on that. Of course, winning is the priority. The fact that I didn’t play in Miami but we won was huge. Losing to Dallas sucked. And the fact that we can get an away win here was really great.”
While it would be nice for the Sixers to have a consistent post-season rotation, that may not be the case. No lineup stands out. And Niang’s performance against Milwaukee might suggest that different role players could be brought in for different encounters. For most of the game, Milwaukee avoided Tucker when he had the ball. Antetokounmpo in particular disregarded his former teammate in the corners.
While Niang might not be a perfect option against a team like Miami, Milwaukee seems like a different story. That’s because Niang makes teams pay to take on Embiid and Harden. In a game midway through last season against the Bucks, Niang came on for Matisse Thybulle and the Sixers were on course to a win. The same happened on Saturday when Tucker took over the role of Thybulle.
Niang even made Antetokounmpo pay twice.
Niang jokes that he’s “a basketball player,” but this is the life of a shooting specialist. If your shots go in, you’re doing your job. If they don’t, it’s not you. Despite the recent slump, Niang is overshooting 40.7 percent this season. That’s exactly his career average. He hits the back of his baseball card.
“We kept telling him you’re a marksman, we’re not sending you outside to defend yourself. Keep shooting the ball,” Rivers said.
Harden is still one of the best isolation players in the league. He ranks in the 100th percentile in isolation volume and 84th percentile (1,142 points per possession) in isolation scoring efficiency, according to Synergy Sports. With these skills in mind, Niang can be used as a weapon for Harden.
The Sixers went matchup hunting with Khris Middleton defending Niang. Specifically, they wanted the ultra-pesky Jrue Holiday swap with Harden’s Middleton. To make that switch, the Sixers went to a double-screen play called 2 Down, Thumb Up. The first pick is Niang on Harden, which transitions into a Harden Embiid pick and roll.
Other times, it was easier: Niang went after Harden, the Sixers switched, and Harden was isolated with his favorite matchup. While Milwaukee has the best defense in the league, there are a few weaker defenders that Harden can attack in isolation than, say, Boston. That’s something to keep in mind for the playoffs.
McDaniels, the trade-deadline acquisition, is not used to playing in big games. He’s been up and down since making his Sixers debut a few weeks ago. But he made some massive offensive plays in the last three minutes: after Antetokounmpo fouled him on a 3-point try, McDaniels made all three free throws. And after getting that close to highlight reel dunks multiple times, he crashed out of the corner, finishing a putback slam after an Embiid miss.
McDaniels also defended Holiday on the stretch, and while Holiday executed the two-man game well with Antetokounmpo, McDaniels didn’t look out of place on defense.
If these two teams meet in the playoffs, a big question would be how much Embiid can match Antetokounmpo. If Embiid can stay out of nasty trouble, the answer is likely quite often. Lopez is a 38 percent shooter who can pound Embiid with pick-and-pop jumpers, and honestly Embiid has some of the best physical tools to defend Antetokounmpo in the league.
On the track, the Sixers put Niang on Lopez and Embiid on Antetokounmpo. While Embiid waited at the basket, Antetokounmpo drove the ball straight at him. One was designated a block, the other a cargo.
“It’s not easy to protect him, but when you’re 7-2, you can move and you’re strong, it’s not easy, but it’s a lot easier,” Embiid said. “Because he’s so strong and going so hard it’s like having a full-back jumping on you and you just have to accept it and hope for the best.”
Embiid finished the tournament with 31 points, 10 assists and six rebounds. After that, he was quick to mention that it wasn’t his best game. Backup center Paul Reed gave the Sixers a big boost off the bench.
Still, Embiid found a way to make plays in winning time. Twice late in the game Embiid forced Antetokounmpo to shoot over him and the Sixers got key stops. At the other end he drilled the kickoff.
The Sixers were far from perfect on Saturday. They made mistakes in executing the game plan in the first three quarters. Transitional defense is a big topic. But the Sixers fought back anyway, ending the Bucks’ 16-game winning streak. That shows resilience, but don’t forget the Sixers’ talent either.
“We should try to find a way not to put ourselves in those positions in the first place so that we don’t have to[come back]again,” Embiid said. “Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.”
If the Sixers are looking for a title for their 2022-23 video yearbook, their star may have settled on one: sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.
(Top Photo of Khris Middleton and James Harden: Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)