Joel Embiid is so good, do the Sixers even need James Harden? | Marcus Hayes

The 76ers traded Ben Simmons for James Harden on Thursday. They won their next two games, on Friday and Saturday nights.

Did not play: James Harden.

Did play: Joel Embiid. Historically.

He didn’t even need his new running mate.

First, Embiid scored 25 points and pulled 19 rebounds, as many as he’s pulled in the last two seasons, all with a sore wrist. For this, he apologized.

Twenty-four-and-a-half hours later, Embiid delivered his finest game as a Sixer: 40 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists. With an even sorer wrist. On the second night of back-to-back games. In a win over Cleveland, the No. 3 team in the Eastern Conference.

It was the Sixers’ first 40-point triple-double since March 18, 1968, when Wilt Chamberlain went 53-32-14 against the Lakers.

Embiid did it without shooting guard Seth Curry, the second-most accurate three-point shooter in NBA history (minimum 2.1 attempts per game). He did it without backup center Andre Drummond. They’d been traded.

And, of course, he did it without James Harden.

Embiid’s 40-14-10 triple-double has been reached just nine times in the past 15 years.

Two players did it twice. Russell Westbrook is one.

The other? James Edward Harden.

We’re just kidding, Mr. Beard.

Of course, Embiid and the Sixers will be better when the Beard suits up, but the Beast has to hold it down until at least after the All-Star break. The Celtics visit Tuesday, and they’ve won eight in a row, but the Sixers and Embiid have won the last two meetings this season. The Sixers finish the first half of the season in Milwaukee on Thursday. The defending NBA champions sit a half-game ahead of the Sixers in the Eastern Conference standings.

Harden, nursing a hamstring injury that cost him the last six games with Brooklyn, participated in a light practice Monday. He’ll miss Tuesday’s and Thursday’s games, as well as the All-Star Game, and return to action after the break.

» READ MORE: James Harden practices for first time with Sixers, but will not play until after All-Star break

Which only gives Embiid further opportunity to chase his first MVP award.

The 40-point Saturday solidified Embiid’s spot atop the scoring race. He’s on pace to be the first center to lead the league since Shaquille O’Neal did it in 2000. Notably, Shaq — one of Embiid’s most prominent, frequent, and justified critics — had only two triple-doubles. Embiid already has twice as many, and Shaq’s highest scoring output in those was 24 points.

So, while Saturday was Embiid’s best statistical outing, was it also his finest hour as a professional? I’d say so. I’m not alone.

“One of my coaches said that,” Sixers coach Doc Rivers said Monday. “Joel did some things defensively there’s no numbers to [measure]. Pressuring their big.”

Being real big. It’s a habit.

There have been other big games in big spots.

He dropped 46 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists, and 7 blocks in L.A. in November 2017, but those Lakers stunk. He clinched a playoff berth over the Bucks in March 2019 with 40 points, 15 rebounds, and 6 assists. He went 31-16-7-6 in the 2019 playoffs against the Nets on a sore knee. He had 40 points and 13 rebounds in a key Game 2 win over the Hawks in the ill-fated Eastern Conference semifinal last year.

But in no other performance has Embiid displayed the deft passing, the complete comprehension, and the timely efficiency of Saturday night’s win: Forty points in less than 33 minutes.

Of course, Friday’s game might have been even more impressive.

A pall was lifted when Sixers president Daryl Morey dumped Simmons, the NBA’s weirdest diva, to the Nets in the biggest trade of assets in Sixers history: Harden and Paul Millsap for Simmons, Curry, Drummond, and two first-round picks.

“Whenever you make a trade, there’s some kind of energy,” Rivers said.

The positive energy was palpable Friday.

Embiid scored 11 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the first quarter, the first first-quarter double-double since play-by-play stats became common 26 years ago.

His energy faded as the wrist ached more. He shot 8-for-25 and missed six of seven threes ... but he closed the game out single-handedly, as it were.

With 6:25 to play, the Sixers led by seven points, 89-82. Less than four minutes later, after a 14-4 run, Embiid left for good. He’d scored 12 of those points. He’d assisted on the other two.

He called this a “bad game.”

Imagine how good it’s going to get.

“He’s in a great place. His body feels great,” Rivers said. “It’s key for us that his body stays that way, and he’s in a great mental place for us, as well.”

This might be more necessary than Rivers hopes. After all, Harden is 32, and he only played 89 of a possible 126 games for the Nets, including three playoff absences last season.

What if James Harden is a luxury? What if he’s not necessary? Can Embiid carry the load?

Don’t bet against it.