Storylines to watch in the Sixers’ stretch run, including James Harden’s fit and Tyrese Maxey’s role

The All-Star break has long been regarded as the unofficial midway point of the NBA season. But as coach Doc Rivers reminded following the 76ers’ dramatic victory against the Milwaukee Bucks last Thursday, the brief hiatus actually occurs ahead of the final “sprint” of the regular season.

Only 24 games remain before the playoffs for the Sixers, who now add recently acquired perennial All-Star James Harden to a team insistent about making an immediate championship run. An acclimation process normally reserved for training camp, the preseason and early regular season must now unfold in the middle of a highly competitive Eastern Conference playoff race for Harden.

How quickly Harden establishes his fit — or does not — alongside star big man Joel Embiid and the rest of the Sixers is the obvious top storyline to track for the rest of the season. But here are five more developments to monitor:

Embiid made his own case for winning the NBA’s top individual award during All-Star Weekend, highlighting his dominant play on both ends, scoring versatility and career-best facilitating while navigating the “drama” of the finally resolved Ben Simmons saga.

But what he said two days earlier, after that win over the Bucks, was perhaps even more poignant:

“I’m playing at such a high level, I don’t want to stop,” he said. “I want to keep going. I feel really good. I’m not going to just not work or take a couple days off.”

» READ MORE: Can Joel Embiid stay healthy? The center looks to rewrite history, as his MVP case and the Sixers’ season depend on it.

Embiid entered the break leading the NBA in scoring at 29.6 points per game, while also averaging 11.2 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. He has also only missed one game since mid-December, a planned rest day for the Sixers’ thrilling Jan. 31 overtime victory over Memphis. He has played through knee and wrist/hand issues at times this season, as if he believes the only reason he did not win MVP last season is because he missed 10 consecutive post-All-Star break games with a knee injury.

Given Embiid’s injury history, there is a slight risk in assuming this level of durability will hold up the rest of the season. He is also likely to face continued stiff competition from reigning MVP Nikola Jokic and two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo down the stretch of this race. It’s also fair to wonder if Embiid’s stats will take a slight dip with Harden’s arrival.

Yet Embiid will also command the spotlight plenty because of the league-wide interest in his team, the nationally televised games and tight postseason race. If he maintains a level of play close to his past two months, he will remain a frontrunner for the award.

Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey was adamant that he did not want to include dynamic second-year guard Tyrese Maxey in any blockbuster Simmons trade. Maxey’s appearance at the Rising Stars Game was further evidence of his breakout season, and he comes out of the break averaging 16.9 points, 4.6 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game while shooting 46.9% from the floor and 39% from three-point range.

But now Maxey must adjust to sharing a backcourt — and the ballhandling, offense-initiating and playmaking duties — with Harden.

Maxey said at All-Star Weekend that he is content to play more off the ball or take more catch-and-shoot three-pointers. He should still get lanes to use his burst to attack the paint and finish around the rim. Rivers has also hinted at staggering minutes for Harden and Maxey to keep a ballhandler on the floor at all times, a luxury the Sixers did not have when Shake Milton was out for more than a month with COVID-19 and a back injury.

The pressure will only increase for Maxey down the stretch of the regular season and in the playoffs. But he has never appeared overwhelmed by his increased or changing role. He constantly repeats that he is willing to do whatever it takes to give the Sixers their best chance to win. It’s reasonable to believe this shift won’t faze him, either.

Andre Drummond was clearly a late addition to the Sixers’ trade package for Harden, prompting Rivers to assure that the front office was “looking” at the buyout market for a replacement at backup center.

They found at least a temporary fit earlier this week, with Willie Cauley-Stein set to sign a 10-day contract. Other internal options include Paul Reed, who filled that role immediately after the trade, and newcomer Paul Millsap, who also came over in the Harden deal and got the primary minutes behind Embiid in the win over the Bucks.

» READ MORE: Sixers to sign Willie Cauley-Stein to 10-day contract in attempt to add depth at center

The available backup center minutes will condense during the playoffs. Still, Rivers must identify a player he can trust whenever Embiid gets a short rest.

Harris acknowledged that he would constantly be refreshing his phone leading into the trade deadline, following some rumblings that the Sixers had explored moving him to clear cap space for a summer pursuit of Harden.

Now Harris knows that he will remain with the Sixers through at least the end of this season, and can slide back into being the third — or fourth, depending on Maxey’s continued trajectory — offensive option.

Other than a six-point clunker in the Sixers’ ugliest loss of the season last week to Boston, Harris has been terrific since getting booed by the home crowd during a poor Jan. 3 shooting performance against Houston. In his past 22 games, he averaged 19.1 points on 52.8% shooting and 43.8% from three-point range, along with seven rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.

Rivers has emphasized that Harris is at his best when he is aggressively getting downhill and decisively squaring for his pull-up jumper or finishing at the bucket. And Harden’s arrival should take some of the scoring pressure off Harris, and provide openings when defenses double Harden or Embiid.

Filling the roster cavern occupied by the absent Simmons with a 10-time All-Star in Harden should obviously elevate the Sixers. He is a lethal isolation scorer, an underrated playmaker and an enticing pick-and-roll partner with Embiid.

But Harden’s brilliant offensive repertoire won’t necessarily make up for some of the Sixers’ other shortcomings.

» READ MORE: 13 things to know about new Sixer James Harden

They were the NBA’s worst rebounding team before losing Drummond, though Harden is averaging 8.0 rebounds per game as a guard this season. They also struggle with transition defense, ranking 28th out of 30 teams in fastbreak points allowed (14.2 per game). That end of the floor is not exactly where Harden excels.

Is it still possible for the Sixers to fix — or at least improve — these issues internally? Or are these the weaknesses opponents will exploit during the playoffs?