The Philadelphia 76ers were entering Game 1 of the second round against their rivals Boston Celtics without Joel Embiid, who is suffering from an LCL sprain in the knee.
James Harden decided to step up with a 45-point performance to lead the 76ers to a narrow win without their MVP-caliber center. He outgunned the duo of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, causing fans to go insane.
GAME WON.
🪙 @cryptocom pic.twitter.com/BjHeiXuc2m
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) May 2, 2023
One fan couldn’t believe the fact that the Celtics couldn’t compete against the 76ers bench.
This is one of the worst playoff losses I can remember.
In no universe should a Reed/Tucker/Harris/Maxey/Harden lineup win a 5-out contest against Smart/Brogdon/Brown/Tatum/Horford lineup.
Harden just alpha’d all of those guys.
— Jason Timpf (@_JasonLT) May 2, 2023
Fans joked that Harden deserves to be allowed to party in Vegas before Game 2 as a reward for his carry job.
https://twitter.com/1kalwaysopen_/status/1653214800493654017
Another fan brought up that there was a time when Harden would put on performances like this regularly, and no one would blink an eye.
Harden really used to do this twice a week and people acted like it was normal https://t.co/L6hVIMFFWw
— Old NBA Tweets (@oldnbatweetz) May 2, 2023
Bill Simmons criticized Joe Mazzulla and the Celtics’ defense.
Harden was fantastic.
The Celtics deserved to lose. They’ll do the whole “blah blah blah need a better effort” routine but the D was pathetic, the carelessness with the ball against a BAD defensive team all game was inexcusable, and Doc worked Joe Mazz like a speedbag.
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) May 2, 2023
This game is being hailed as a legendary moment in Harden’s career.
One of the best games of Harden’s entire career when you think about everything involved
No Embiid, on the road, tied his playoff career high and hit the game winner
Legendary moment for him
— 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒆 🌩 (@Three_Cone) May 2, 2023
Many fans were overjoyed at seeing Harden rediscover the version of himself that made him a perennial MVP candidate.
Harden came to the Celtics crib, dropped 45 points and won without Embiid pic.twitter.com/fdUTiTl9pL
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) May 2, 2023
Harden joined Allen Iverson as the only 76ers’ to score 45 points or more in the last 50 years for the franchise.
76ers with a 45-point playoff game over the last 50 years:
— Allen Iverson
— James Harden
That’t it. pic.twitter.com/yOSvEmXgtw
— StatMuse (@statmuse) May 2, 2023
Harden’s 45 points were nicely contributed to by Tyrese Maxey going off for 26 points, while Tobias Harris had a decent 18-point game. The Celtics saw Jayson Tatum put up 39 points, with Jaylen Brown scoring just 23 points. The inefficient offense and lack of production from players across the lineup sunk Boston.
Can The 76ers Win More Games Without Joel Embiid?
The situation with Joel Embiid’s injury is still unclear, as he is suffering from a sprain that would ideally sideline him for a month or two. That essentially means he wouldn’t play in the postseason again, but the 76ers have a genuine chance at a title. Embiid will play as soon as possible to ensure his team can capitalize on this season.
It’ll all come down to what James Harden can do for them. He led them to a win tonight and empowered the likes of Maxey and De’Anthony Melton to have successful performances as well. If Harden can even give the 76ers 30 points a game until Embiid comes back, they’ll be competitive the entire series.
We sincerely appreciate and respect you as a reader of our site. It would help us a lot if you follow us on Google News because of the latest update.
Thanks for following us. We really appreciate your support.
