PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers were one mistake, one missed shot, one bad break away from letting Game 4 against the Boston Celtics slip through their fingers. Through the ups and downs, James Harden stayed strong and once again balled out. The Sixers held on to win in overtime thanks to Harden's 42 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.
After two terrible games, Harden unleashed a scoring barrage that he capped off with a Joel Embiid-assisted corner three to give the Sixers the lead in the final seconds. He shot 16-23 from the field and 6-9 from deep. Doc Rivers helped his star guard get back to being great with…a gospel song.
“James was awesome,” Rivers said after the game. “For a day and a half, James had to get himself back. No one did that but James. [Saturday's film session] was great and we talked and probably 15,000 other people probably talked to him. I sent him a gospel song before the game…the title of it is, ‘Do You Know My Name.’ And James Harden was James Harden tonight.”
When asked about the song during his time at the podium, Harden pulled out his phone to make sure he didn't butcher the title.“I'm on my way to the game and I get a text from Doc,” Harden said, “and I'm like, ‘What the hell going on?’” Failing to pull up the song in a quick manner led to a reporter reminding him what it was. Rivers had actually butchered the title: the song, performed by Tasha Cobbs Leonard, is simply titled, “You Know My Name.”
It was a minor mistake from Rivers but the song's true title is more telling for Harden than what he said it was. Harden doesn't have to ask if someone knows his name. By this point in his career, everyone does. It was only a matter of reminding people that the name is associated with tremendous talent and not just playoff disasters. In Game 4, he did just that.
“It's a gospel song,” Harden said, “and I'm like, ‘Alright, whatever.’ I just told my homies, ‘Let's play the song.’ It's a seven-minute song. I let the whole song play and I'm like ‘Alright, it's gotta be some good juju in the song or whatever. However he's feeling, I want to feel like that.’ I guess it worked.”
“You better play it again,” joked P.J. Tucker, who sat next to Harden at the podium. It's safe to say that the Sixers will keep it handy ahead of Tuesday's Game 5 if it can work wonders like this.
Harden's primary source of motivation wasn't even the song — it was a visitor. He flew out John Hao, a survivor of the mass shooting from February at Michigan State, to watch the game. Harden gave him a hug during his pregame warmups and gifted him autographed shoes after securing the win. The Sixers star said he was his “good luck charm” and said it was “heartbreaking” for him to deal with that tragedy.
John Hao… 6th Man! #Uno pic.twitter.com/dKqLjq7PSF
— James Harden (@JHarden13) May 7, 2023
“He's strong, he's bouncing back and recovering very well,” Harden said. “And I feel like it's my job just to give him that light, that smile that he deserves and he needs.”
Harden gave Hao an unforgettable experience and helped the Sixers tie up the series against the Celtics. No fire could burn him, no battle could turn him and no mountain could stop him today. Thanks to his special guest and a musical uplift from his coach, Harden played one of his best games — and his single most important — for Philly.
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