It was a tough fight but the Philadelphia 76ers ended up beating the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday night.
When the final whistle was called, the 76ers walked away with a 120-110 victory.
The team’s success was once again mostly powered by Joel Embiid, who was good for 41 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Time and time again, Embiid has shown he’s the strongest part of the team so this sort of showing was nothing new.
Tyrese Maxey was also solid with 22 points of his own and Tobias Harris scored 20 too.
And how did James Harden do?
"If Maxey and Tobias Harris are your second-leading guys, I'm not sure its gonna get you far in the playoffs" 👀@JCrossover on his expectations for James Harden with the Sixers pic.twitter.com/kC0CJwB9On
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) January 18, 2023
After 31 minutes, Harden scored only 6 points, 3 rebounds, and 9 assists.
That’s not an amazing night for Harden, who has a troubled history of being up and down when his team needs him most.
Following the game, former player and current NBA analyst Jamal Crawford touched upon Harden’s performance.
He is concerned that the 76ers won’t have what it takes to get into the playoffs if Harden keeps playing like this.
“If Maxey and Tobias Harris are your second-leading guys, I’m not sure it’s going to get you far in the playoffs,” Crawford said.
He noted that Harden was brought to the team to be Embiid’s right-hand man.
Tuesday night showed that he couldn’t always rise to that task.
With such a crowded and tough Eastern Conference, the entire 76ers roster needs to be in fighting shape over the next few months.
Only six points from a former All-Star simply won’t cut it and Harden needs to step it up.
This season is make-or-break for Philadelphia.
If they don’t achieve great success then you can expect some huge changes.
They won’t find that success with Harden playing as he did on Tuesday.
