Ex-NBAer rips Harden, Sixers ‘formula for disaster’ after loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
The Sixers turned in a putrid fourth quarter at home against the Raptors on Sunday night, blowing a lead as the offense turned ice cold. It was a frustrating 12 minutes of basketball for all involved.
And one NBA observer believes the Sixers need to take note of what went wrong in the final frame, because it could spell disaster in the postseason if they’re not careful.
Tim Legler, the former La Salle sharpshooter and current ESPN analyst, had some harsh words for James Harden and the Sixers on Monday morning following the loss.
READ: 3 observations after Sixers lose defensive struggle to Raptors
Legler laid into the Sixers’ overall offensive plan on ‘Get Up’:
“That was as bad an offensive quarter as I’ve seen all year, from any team in the NBA. That kind of ball security that you lack, not getting field goal attempts, being too Harden-centric in their offense, and to me this is a formula for disaster for Philadelphia if they operate their offense, in key moments, like this.
“In a one-possession game you’ve got to continue to move the basketball, you’ve got to continue to play fast and play through Joel Embiid more often.
“[…]
“When they get caught in letting James Harden play the same way he played in Houston, which is basically all high ball screens or isos, they’re going to get in trouble. […] It’s a formula to get them bounced early in the postseason.”
It’s easy to say this feels like an overreaction because the odds of Embiid, Harden, and Tobias Harris going a combined 13-of-41 from the field again are pretty slim.
But I’d say Legler’s criticism is warranted, and Doc Rivers would be wise to heed the advice.
James Harden re-entered the game with 4:31 left in the fourth and the Sixers trailing by one point. Way, way too many possessions late in Sunday’s game were predicated on Harden dribbling the air out of the ball and then either forcing his own shot, going foul hunting, or giving the ball to a teammate with the shot clock nearly expired.
There was no rhythm to the offense, no creativity or movement, and Harden reverted to his worst tendencies – which can’t happen when he’s not the best player on the team. Rivers needs to emphasize movement and getting the ball to his big man, even when the game slows down late.
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The whole point of acquiring someone like Harden, outside of having a player who was actually playing unlike Ben Simmons, was the excitement about having an elite ball-handler and decision-maker for late game situations. But there was also the danger of Harden playing too much hero ball the way he did in the past and disrupting the offense.
When Harden’s hitting step-back threes and getting fouled, it’s incredible to watch and insanely valuable. When his shot isn’t falling all night, however, there’s little-to-no value in bleeding the shot clock instead of working the ball around.
This is what the approach yielded from the Sixers’ two biggest stars in crunch time on Sunday:
Yeesh.
Between this herky-jerky late-game offense and Harden’s seeming allergy to big games, there are a few reasons to have some trepidation about the Harden era – even if the Sixers are 8-4 since the trade. We’ll see if they can iron some of these wrinkles out.
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