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“James Harden has equaled Ben Simmons in all-time Sixers 3s made!”: ‘The Beard’ hits his patented stepbacks and overshadows the newly acquired Nets forward

Samir Mehdi
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“James Harden has equaled Ben Simmons in all-time Sixers 3s made!”: ‘The Beard’ hits his patented stepbacks and overshadows the newly acquired Nets forward

James Harden has made as many threes as a Philadelphia 76er than Ben Simmons did in the 5 years he played in Philly. 

The charity stripe was going through quite a lot in last night’s game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Minnesota Timberwolves. James Harden and Joel Embiid, as expected, were taking to the free throw line as often as ever, combining for a total 22 attempts. With Harden on board, there are two things Embiid isn’t used to seeing from his co-star. 

Having been playing with Ben Simmons for over half a decade, seeing his secondary star take to the free throw line with no hesitation must have been a breath of fresh air. While Simmons was built to barrel through the paint and finish at the rim, he would be quite hesitant as getting fouled would mean a trip to the free throw line.

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Simmons never shot over 62.1% from behind the line and never crossed 5.4 attempts a game in his career. With the way he is built, this should not have been the case. 

The second aspect of Harden’s game that Joel can take solace in is his 3-point shooting. 

James Harden does what Ben Simmons did over 4 years, in one game. 

The major gripe with Ben Simmons was that he would not space the floor in the slightest. Enter James Harden. This isn’t a problem any longer as ‘The Beard’ had as good of a debut as any player could’ve had with a new team/ he dropped 27 points and dished out 12 assists while grabbing 8 rebounds.

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Most importantly, he did so while shooting 5-7 from three point range. Five made threes is the amount of shots Simmons made from beyond the arc in 4 whole years as a 76er on 34 attempts. 

With James Harden being as good as he was from distance, his performance felt like a borderline mockery of what the Sixers have been over the past few years. Safe to say that the Harden era in Philly will be much appreciated. 

About the author

Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi

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Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

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