PHILADELPHIA — James Harden's foot injury is firmly a thing of the past now. The Philadelphia 76ers have now won six games in a row following Harden's clunky return to the court. The Sixers torched the Detroit Pistons by a score of 113-93, showing once again how good they can be when Harden and Joel Embiid play well together.
Harden had it going tonight. He posted just 15 points and eight assists but kept the Sixers going with some lovely passes and buckets inside and outside of the arc. Excluding his first game back from a month-long absence, Harden is averaging 20.7 points, 11.3 assists and 5.7 rebounds while shooting 47.1 percent from the field and 38.6 percent from deep. Embiid maintains that Harden is the ultimate x-factor for them on offense and has liked what he has seen over the last few games from his co-star.
the Harbiid combo.™️ pic.twitter.com/ihcXgyzZm5
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) December 22, 2022
“He looks good,” Embiid said of Harden. “His burst, him going at guys, him making plays, pushing the ball. Defensively, he's been good. It's all about staying healthy so let's keep that going.” Against the Pistons, Harden got downhill plenty of times and ignited fastbreaks with his outlet passing. Trending in a positive direction is not limited to just him or Embiid. The team overall is playing well despite missing one of their key stars, Tyrese Maxey.
“We're locked in. We're together,” Joel Embiid said of the Sixers. “We know we got a top-two defense in the league. Offensively, I think we're finding our ways, even when we're not making shots. I think we're just coming together.”
James Harden's league-leading minutes are something to keep in mind for the 33-year-old and Doc Rivers knows this. Although he maintains he isn't worried, he also acknowledged that he plans to have his minutes decline eventually. For the time he is on the court, he'll work to continue building chemistry with Embiid.
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