Sixers’ James Harden could not stop gushing over his new teammate and MVP frontrunner Joel Embiid after his debut with the team
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After waiting for 15 days, the Philadelphia 76ers finally got to see what they traded for. Giving away Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, and a future first-round pick, the Sixers got back James Harden and Paul Millsap. While Millsap started suiting up for the Sixers since their contest against the Celtics, Harden was out till yesterday.
The Sixers, taking the Minnesota Timberwolves on the road, dropped the first look at their duo. Joel Embiid and James Harden combined for 61 points as they blew the Wolves out. Philly secured a comfortable 133-102 win. The Beard put up impressive numbers in his Sixers’ debut.
James Harden 76ers debut:
27 PTS
8 REB
12 AST
2 TOV7-12 FG
5-7 3P
8-9 FTHe was a +35, the highest +/- on the team. pic.twitter.com/br8D79nTNc
— StatMuse (@statmuse) February 26, 2022
He also tied Ben Simmons for threes made in a Sixers’ jersey.
James Harden sings praise for Joel Embiid after their first game together
Imagine being a 3x scoring champion in the NBA and suddenly you’ve landed yourself on a team with probably the most dominant big in recent times. It’s like Christmas came early! This is exactly what is happening for James Harden, and the Sixers are there to reap the benefit. With both Harden and Embiid demanding so much attention, the rest of the team gets open looks and is benefitting from the same.
After the game, Harden talked about Joel. He said,
“Joel Embiid makes the game so much easier for everybody on the court with him, considering how great of a scorer he is, inside and out. He draws so much attention that we got so much space on the floor and we’re able to do whatever we want.”
#Sixers PG James Harden on center Joel Embiid: pic.twitter.com/Hqb0DNxSsl
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) February 26, 2022
Even Joel was all praise for Harden after the game.
The happiest man in the room wouldn’t have been either of these two. It would have been Daryl Morey, who’s scheming and plotting for over a year finally seems to be paying off.