The Philadelphia 76ers are trying to avoid a pattern of playoff shortcomings. The team is reportedly considering setting James Harden up for success by surrounding him with stars and playing small lineups, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The “new nba playoff format” is a change that has been introduced by the Philadelphia 76ers. They are setting James Harden up to avoid pattern of NBA Playoffs shortcomings.
As dominant as James Harden has been Typical Season after Typical Season, his postseason legacy hasn’t matched his level of dominance in the first 82 games of each season. The Philadelphia 76ers, on the other hand, seem to be taking efforts to guarantee that trend is broken in the 2022 NBA Playoffs by gradually incorporating him into the offense while allowing Joel Embiid to remain the focal point.
A five-game sample is always faulty, but that’s all we have going into a big Thursday night battle with the Brooklyn Nets, which might include a Doc Rivers-backed video tribute to former Sixer Ben Simmons. But even that small sample size has already proven to be instructive, and Philadelphia fans should be happy with what they’re witnessing.
If regular-season Harden outperforms playoff Harden, the Larry O’Brien Trophy might return to Philadelphia for the first time since Moses Malone’s “Fo’, fo,’ fo’” forecast in 1983 missed the mark by by one game.
James Harden has a track record of postseason failures.
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In best-of-seven series that feature game-to-game adjustments designed to frustrate stars, James Harden hasn’t been able to match his regular-season performances as rotations shrink, referees swallow their whistles a little more frequently, and the intensity is turned up to 11 in best-of-seven series that feature game-to-game adjustments designed to frustrate stars, James Harden hasn’t been able to match his regular-season performances.
Of course, that’s a high bar to meet. The bearded shooting guard won MVP in 2017-18 and has established himself as one of the most terrifying offensive players in NBA history, owing to his jaw-dropping mix of three-point proficiency and free-throw efficiency.
But it doesn’t change the fact that he’s consistently fallen short in the most important games.
Harden’s postseason stats have paled in contrast to his regular-season numbers since he relinquished his sixth-man position with the Oklahoma City Thunder and became a heavenly figure with the Houston Rockets in 2012-13:
| Stat | Typical Season | Playoffs |
| PPG | 28.8 | 27.6 |
| RPG | 6.3 | 5.7 |
| APG | 8.1 | 7.2 |
| FG%/3P%/FT%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% | 44.3/36.1/86.2 | 42.4/32.7/87.4 |
| TS% | 61.1 | 58.4 |
| WS/48 | 0.233 | 0.182 |
| BPM | 7.8 | 7.7 |
Harden has been outstanding in the playoffs by the standards of a regular human being who doesn’t routinely adopt the shape of a basketball divinity on the offensive end. However, as indicated by stats that are less outstanding across the board, the drop from his personal standard has been obvious.
Furthermore, Harden has provided enough of anecdotal evidence to his detractors:
- In the Finals defeat to the Miami Heat in 2012, he averaged just 12.4 points while slashing 37.5/31.8/79.2.
- In 2013, he shot 7-of-22 in Game 6 of a first-round battle against an Oklahoma City Thunder team without Russell Westbrook.
- He had 12 turnovers in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals in 2015, resulting in a loss to the Golden State Warriors.
- He finished 2-of-11 from the field in the last defeat of a second-round series with the San Antonio Spurs in 2017, fueling suspicions that he had deserted the club.
- In the Western Conference Finals of 2018, he missed 22 consecutive three-point tries against the Golden State Warriors.
- Injuries prevented him from establishing a rhythm against the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021.
And those are just a few instances; this is by no means an exhaustive list of Harden’s postseason faults.
Since joining the Rockets and becoming a star, the Arizona State product has appeared in 17 possible elimination games. His teams have gone 8-9 this season, and he has averaged 26.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 6.1 assists, 2.4 steals, 0.9 blocks, and 5.2 turnovers while shooting 41.2/31.9/84.8 percent from the field.
But things haven’t been looking so well recently.
Harden’s sole win in his past eight possible elimination games, dating back to the 2015 Western Conference Finals against the Warriors, came in Game 7 against the Thunder in the first round of the 2020 playoffs. He’s averaging 24.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 2.3 steals, 0.9 blocks, and 6.3 turnovers during that 1-7 period, while slashing — hold your nose for your own safety — 39.7/23.7/80.3.
The Philadelphia 76ers seem to have figured out what has been holding James Harden back in the past.
The Philadelphia 76ers’ James Harden watches the Chicago Bulls. | Getty Images/Mitchell Leff
This isn’t to argue James Harden isn’t a “clutch” player.
A few of the downturns have featured unfortunate timing, but a combination of injuries, ineffective teammates, effective opposing schemes, and — here’s the big one — fatigue has reared its ugly head. Harden is routinely tasked with such a monumental workload during the Typical Season that he can run out of steam during the high-intensity series that take center stage after Game 82.
His style, after all, depends heavily on dribbling exhibitions, step-back threes, and physical bursts to the basket, all of which require significant energy expenditures. The toll of operating in such fashion throughout a Typical Season is only magnified when he’s subjected to even more schematic and defensive attention against the same opponent while working with a more sporadic whistle.
To their credit, the Sixers seem to be acknowledging this.
They’re allowing him to take maintenance days to rehab a strained hamstring, and head coach Doc Rivers understands the significance of getting him back to full strength before the All-Star break. “I believe it’s more to make sure he’s good, healthy, and ready to play,” Harden told ESPN’s Tim Bontemps after a mid-February practice and before Harden missed a number of games before to the midseason break.
Even when its newest star is active, Philadelphia is implementing what it preaches. It hasn’t burdened him with too much responsibility, instead allowing him to run comfortable sets while incorporating him into an offense that continues to rely heavily on Joel Embiid.
Harden’s usage rate and assist percentage (the percentage of shots made by teammates while he’s on the floor that come from his assists) show as much:
Only the last set of data points focuses completely on his time in Philadelphia, and it’s no accident that they show his assist % nearing its pinnacle and his usage rate nearing its lowest in 2021-22.
Will the trend, however, continue? That hasn’t been decided yet.
Harden has appeared at ease instantly, displaying more pass-first instincts while deferring touches to the guy pursuing the first scoring championship for a center since Shaquille O’Neal, and it seems to be working. That might be all the motivation the Sixers need to keep this experiment going, particularly considering the history that should deter them from overworking their 32-year-old southpaw.
Philadelphia is solidly in the mix of genuine Eastern Conference championship contenders, rubbing hands with the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks while fending off the onslaught of the Boston Celtics and upstart Chicago Bulls. With Harden in the lineup, the team is unbeaten.
Ultimately, president of basketball operations Daryl Morey didn’t acquire Harden just to make more noise in the Typical Season so much as to earn the franchise’s first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 2001 and first title since 1983.
This can be accomplished by keeping Harden healthy and fresh for the playoffs while yet incorporating him into Rivers’ strategies.
Unless otherwise stated, all stats are courtesy of Basketball Reference and are current as of March 9.
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