Philadelphia — James Harden of the 76ers was on his way to the Wells Fargo Center Sunday morning when he received a text from his coach, Doc Rivers, that included a link to a gospel song, “You Know My Name” by Tasha Cobbs Leonard. This was the first time Rivers had sent Hardin a song. piqued his curiosity.
“I say to my friends, ‘Let’s play the song,'” Hardin recalled, adding, “I let the whole song work, and I’m like, ‘Well, it has to be some kind of good magic in this song. ‘”
It wasn’t a random text, of course. The basketball-watching world has spent nearly 36 hours dissecting Harden’s poor performance in the previous two games of the 76ers’ Eastern Conference series with the Boston Celtics. Rivers said that the purpose of sending the song was to remind Hardin who he is.
“James had to pick himself up,” Rivers said.
Sure enough, with 19 seconds left in overtime on Sunday afternoon, Harden sank a baseline three-pointer that lifted the 76ers to a 116-115 victory and tied the best-of-seven series at 2-2. Harden was outstanding in Game 4, finishing with 42 points, 9 assists, 8 rebounds, and 4 steals.
“Quite honestly, today was do-or-die,” Harden said.
The 76ers have been a staple in the NBA playoffs for the past six seasons, appearing in five conference semifinal games. But that second round series is where the road tends to end. The last time they reached the Conference Finals was in 2001, when Allen Iverson led them past the Milwaukee Bucks and into the NBA Finals. (The 76ers ended up losing in five games to the Los Angeles Lakers.)
The Philadelphians’ collective patience seemed to be wearing thin. Before Game 3, when NBA Commissioner Adam Silver presented 76ers center Joel Embiid with his first Most Valuable Player award, it was a fulfillment — on one level at least — of the dusty team-building scheme known as The Operation. Without getting into too many messy details, the team has been involved in playing bad basketball for several seasons while amassing a slew of top draft picks, which they used to pick Embiid out of the University of Kansas from.
Of course, the challenge for the 76ers is that the process has never been about winning individual titles, nice though that is. The mandate now, on players like Embiid and Harden, but also on Rivers and Daryl Morey, the head basketball player, is to compete for the championship. Embiid is 29 years old. The 76ers traded for Harden last season. Prior to Game 4, Rivers was asked about his team’s level of urgency.
“Do I really need to answer this question?” he said laughing. “I worked on this question for 48 hours, and this is what I came up with? Whatever the height, I’m going to assume it’s high.”
Hardness delivered. Early in the first quarter, he took a beeline for the basket and scored on a runner, comically throwing the ball off his head after it had fallen through the hoop. It was a sign of more fireworks to come.
None of that was easy. The 76ers gave up a 16-point lead in the third quarter. Embiid finished with 34 points and 13 rebounds, but struggled from the field, shooting 11 of 26. Jason Tatum scored 22 of his 24 points after halftime, nearly leading the Celtics to a landslide victory. Instead, Harden carried the load on the 76ers.
“I’m always competitive,” he said. “I always want to win.”
During the regular season, Harden served as a facilitator, averaging a league-best 10.7 assists per game. He wasn’t the record holder nor the three-point shooting machine he formerly played in basketball with the Houston Rockets. Instead, he formed a strong partnership with Embiid, the attractive force of the team. Everything and everyone revolved around Embiid, with good reason, including Harden.
Game 1 of the 76ers’ series with the Celtics upsets that balance in a strange and unexpected way. Embiid sprained his right knee late in the first round and was sidelined, meaning Harden apparently felt compelled to ride his time machine and return to his voracious, ball-dominant days with the Rockets. He lit the Celtics on fire, scoring 45 points while shooting 7-of-14 from 3-point range to lead the 76ers to a hard-fought victory.
Embiid was back in the lineup for Matches 2 and 3, and suddenly Harden seemed almost aware of his teammate’s presence, passive and very considerate. It hardly helped that Jaylen Brown attached himself to Harden for long periods. In those two losses, Harden shot 5 of 28 from the field and 2 of 13 from 3-point range. The third game on Friday was particularly harrowing. Harden routinely skipped open shots. When he fired a 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter, he was barely scratching the front of the rim. More than a few fans expressed their displeasure.
“I think with anyone, if you don’t pay, you waver sometimes,” Rivers said.
For his part, Harden defended his shooting choice, telling reporters, “I’m very good at basketball. I know when to score. I know when to pass, so I’m sure a lot of it was right play.”
On Saturday, the 76ers had an extended photo session at their practice facility. Rivers identified segments of Game 3 where he felt the 76ers needed to play with more pace, where the Celtics attacked them for rebounds and loose balls, and where their players showed poor body language. The Celtics, who qualified for the NBA Finals last season and renewed their title aspirations, have carried themselves differently.
Rivers said, “I think the movie yesterday said what we should be, that they’re going to run, that we’re going to make a mistake. It’s not going to go well, and keep playing.”
On Sunday, the 76ers made a lot of mistakes. Their offense stopped in the fourth quarter. They stop moving and settle for the tough shots. Despite this, Harden has playoff experience, and he said he was also inspired In the presence of John Howe, the student who survived the fatal shooting at Michigan State University in February. Harden and Hao connected via FaceTime.
Late in the game, Harden’s runner-up on the Celtics’ Al Horford tied the score, 107-107. And in overtime, Harden came up with a key steal while defending Marcus Smart. He seemed to have a calming effect on his teammates.
He also found himself with the ball in his hands when it mattered most. He knew who he was.