James Harden starred in a controversial moment last week following a Philadelphia 76ers painful loss against the Brooklyn Nets at Wells Fargo Center. The Sixers didn’t have an answer for Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in Ben Simmons’ return to the arena he called home for the past five years.
After the game was over and the Nets left Philly with a big win, everybody had something to say about the Sixers’ terrible performance. It looked like a good time to reflect about being at the same level as others powerhouses in the Eastern Conference, but James Harden had different plans. The Beard went to a party with rappers Travis Scott and Lil Baby.
This raised a lot of eyebrows around the NBA community since Harden completely ignored his team’s defeat and went to celebrate. Everybody had something to say about that, including ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith, who issued a big warning to Harden about partying in Philly after losing a big game.
.@stephenasmith to James Harden after his performance against the Nets:
"I know this city. … When you played like you played the other night, you cannot be seen out partying that night like it meant no big deal to you." pic.twitter.com/hoP3pp9Mbg
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) March 13, 2022
“I need to send a message on national television to James Harden. As a person that worked in Philadelphia for 17 years… I know this city. They love you, they appreciate the fact that you are not Ben Simmons, but make no mistake when you play like you played the other night, you can not be seen out partying that night like it meant no big deal to you because the city, I can assure you, it was a big deal to them and be careful James Harden be very, very careful. It ain’t Houston,” Smith told on a recent edition of NBA Countdown.
Harden’s tenure with the team started pretty well, meshing almost perfectly with Joel Embiid. After a series of wins, the Nets brought the Sixers back to earth, dismantling them last week at home. The former NBA MVP disappeared against Kyrie Irving’s intense defense, something that Smith also noticed.
If they want to win the 2022 NBA championship, the Sixers must play better than this. Even though they are a dangerous team, they couldn’t get past the Miami Heat, Brooklyn Nets, and yesterday, Nikola Jokic’s Denver Nuggets beat them at home, too. They have an incredible squad, but they’ll need an extra to have a deep playoff run.
