James Harden doesn’t disappoint Sixers fans who came to witness him play at Wells Fargo Center
Harden had 26 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists in his home debut with the Sixers in a 123-108 victory over the New York Knicks.
It was not an understated affair.
Meek Mill’s music blared from the Wells Fargo Center speakers an hour before the game. A larger crowd than normal hovered around the players’ tunnel leading from the 76ers’ locker room, waiting to get a glimpse of a particular Sixers standout. Former Sixer JJ Redick made his debut as a color commentator for ESPN’s broadcast of the game. Kentucky coach John Calipari was on hand, seated behind one baseline in the second row.
And there was James Harden, who was the reason for Wednesday night’s excitement. He was the player fans wanted to see come out of the tunnel and the main storyline for Redick.
Wednesday marked Harden’s much-anticipated home debut after being acquired from the Brooklyn Nets along with Paul Millsap for Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, and two first-round picks on Feb. 10. And he didn’t disappoint, finishing with 26 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists in the Sixers’ 123-108 victory over the New York Knicks.
“It was great,” Harden said of his debut. “Just the excitement from the beginning of the game. I felt the energy. I felt the love. So I just wanted to come out there and show my love back. I just wanted to play well at both ends of the court, ultimately get the win.”
It was great seeing him make his Sixers debut Friday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Target Center. A lot of fans flocked to New York on Sunday to watch him play against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
But seeing him play at the Sixers’ home arena was different for the sellout crowd of 21,333 that waited 20 days to see him play in person.
Fans in the arena an hour before the game gave him a loud applause when he ran onto the court for his pregame workout. Then the sellout crowd cheered whenever he appeared in the Sixers’ introductory video. The cheers were louder when he was the first player introduced in the starting lineup. And the fans cheered him when he touched the ball the first time, and whenever he scored a basket or made a solid play.
“It was just exciting,” Harden said. “The love, the fans, it just felt like home. Just the love, the support, you look around as it’s just, ‘We love you, James.’ That right there makes you go out there and play harder. And I just wanted to do whatever it takes to get the win.”
He had a slow start, though.
The 2018 MVP had an early turnover before missing his first two shot attempts — a three-pointer and a layup.
However, just like on Friday night, Harden’s first basket came on an and-one while driving to the left side of the basket. He made the foul shot to pull the Sixers within four points (18-14) with 5 minutes, 32 seconds left in the first quarter. Thirty-six seconds later, Harden buried a step-back three-pointer. While running down the court, Harden looked over at a family member who stood up to signal a three-pointer, and grimaced. He went on to score 19 points on 7-for-11 shooting, including making 2 of 5 three-pointers, to go with 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 turnover in the first half.
» READ MORE: Tobias Harris’ role with Sixers changed after the James Harden trade. And he’s accepted that.
Harden made a impact in the third quarter despite attempting just one shot from the field. He assisted on three of the Sixers’ baskets in addition to scoring an and-one and making the foul shot. Harden also added two more foul shots to score five points as the Sixers outscored the Knicks, 38-19, in the decisive quarter.
His ninth assist came after Tobias Harris grabbed a defensive rebound and passed the ball to him. Harden, in turn, fired a long pass down the court to a streaking Matisse Thybulle, who scored on a layup to give the Sixers a 118-102 lead with 1:42 remaining. He then added a pair of foul shots to put the Sixers up 120-104 at the 1:15 mark.
Harden left to standing ovation with 27.4 seconds left.
Harden now needs four three-pointers to pass to Hall Famer Reggie Miller (2,560) for third place on the NBA’s all-time three-point list.
Just like in his first two games, he did a great job of getting out in transition, delivering the ball to teammates and being the vocal leader.
“I’m very comfortable in a lot of situations, whether it’s basketball or just in life,” Harden said of asserting himself early on with the Sixers. “I feel like you can put me anywhere in a room, and I can fit in. So here is no different. Just survey the room, see what you have and try your best to fit in, or for me to be the best James Harden that I can be in every aspect.”
The Sixers have been a completely different team since his arrival. He and MVP front-runner Joel Embiid have been one of the league’s most dominant duos.
And the Sixers looked like a different team when he was out of the game. It was like something was missing. The team didn’t have the same on-the-court leadership. Nor was its play as crisp. As he had been doing since his arrival, Harden constantly coached up his teammates and encouraged them.
His encouragement was major reason behind Tyrese Maxey scoring 21 of his 25 points in the second half.
“James came up and asked me if I was going to play today,” Maxey said. “I told him, ‘Yeah.’ ...”
Thybulle has also benefited from playing with Harden.
The small forward had scoring performances of six, one, and zero points in the three games leading up to Harden’s debut. However, he had 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting in Friday’s victory over the Timberwolves. Then Thybulle finished with eight points on 4-for-6 shooting in Sunday’s win at New York. And he had 10 points on 4-for-6 shooting against the Knicks on Wednesday.
“I think his ability to find me cutting is [behind the scoring uptick], he’s probably one of the best in the league at it,” Thybulle said. “So for me to be able to take advantage of his skill set and kind of use the defense against themselves and create easy opportunities for myself and us as a team — that’s huge.”
There’s no denying that Harden and the Sixers have been a great fit. In Embiid, he’s paired with a big man who’s able to do a lot on the court. The Sixers also have versatile players in Maxey and Harris.
“And then you got spacing,” Harden said. “You got shooters and cutters and guys that are really smart off the ball. So for me, I try to help whenever I can. But for the most part, it’s been seamless.”
Based on the love he received, the fans in attendance are in total agreement.