After dropping the ball in Game 4, the Philadelphia 76ers will need another game to close out the rowdy and determined Toronto Raptors.
But the biggest problem for the Sixers is not a Game 5 on their home court. Rather, it’s James Harden, who has yet to play like the superstar he was back in Houston.
Harden has been underwhelming this series, and many are concerned that his best days are already behind him. On “NBA Countdown,” Stephen A. Smith became the latest to sound the alarm.
“James Harden looks done! And I don’t need Jalen Rose’s glasses to tell me that. Let’s just get it out of the way right now. What I mean by ‘done,’ he’s not a scrub. He can still play. He can average over 20 and 8 for you. That’s not what I mean when I say he’s done. I’m talking about the James Harden that we saw in Houston, that brother is no more. He’s not getting the level of separation he once was, he’s not getting loose and evasive from defenders because he just doesn’t have the quickness. He hasn’t been the same since that hamstring injury… as a result, that puts even more onus on Joel Embiid.”
"James Harden looks done! … The James Harden that we saw in Houston, that brother is no more.”
—@stephenasmith 😳 pic.twitter.com/6PSNn15Dhs
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 23, 2022
The idea that Harden has lost a step isn’t new. Since his days in Brooklyn, fans have noted his shockingly underwhelming play.
When it comes to this series against Toronto, some predicted he’d be a no-show from the start.
“James Harden isn’t the same guy that he was when he was in his prime,” said Jason Timpf. “I’ve been on this all season. He’s lost a little bit of his step and it’s made everything that he does on the court a lot more difficult. In 2018, he shot 40.1% on pull-up jump shots. This year, 32.9%. 2018, he averaged 3.9 made field goals in the restricted area per game. This year with the Sixers, 2.1. So he’s getting to the rim and finishing half as often then he did when he was in his prime…. so James Harden is just not the same guy.”
Whatever is going on with James Harden, the 76ers need him to be better if they want any hope of making a deep playoff run.
Even with Embiid at his best, it might not be enough to carry them past some of the other Eastern Conference elites.
Having Harden in his peak form is exactly who the Sixers are hoping for, and exactly what they traded for back in February.
