On February 18, Beijing time, the NBA regular season 76ers against the Bucks, Harden continued to watch from the sidelines, and the guest coach attracted heated discussion. Throughout the game, Embiid shot 14 of 21, 3 of 4 from three-point range, 11 of 14 from the free throw line, got 42 points, 14 rebounds and 5 assists, and beat Brother Alphabet.
The showdown was also a strong dialogue in the East, with the two teams playing hard in the first quarter, with the 76ers trailing by 3 points on the road. In the second quarter, the Bucks opened the gap 19-6, and the 76ers shouted a timeout.
When Harden was on time, he gave Maxi some guidance, and the result was miraculous. When the timeout came back, Maxi exploded, one man scored 14 points in a row, and under his leadership, the 76ers also overtook the score. The team scored 45 points in a single quarter, scoring 11 points.
At the end of the third quarter, the 76ers also maintained the lead. However, the defending champion who played at home fought back under the leadership of Brother Alphabet and exploded a wave of 20-9 to take the lead again.
However, the 76ers did not collapse, with 2 minutes and 32 seconds left, Embiid hit a jumper, and the 76ers rebounded by one point. Embiid then made two fouls and one of the two, at which point he had completed his 19th 30+10 of the season. Embiid re-fouled, two free throws and two shots, with no mercy at the crucial moment.
It is worth mentioning that in the game, Embiid also used the three-point stunt of withdrawing from Harden, singles Ibaka won, now learning to use, this time successful. The US media "Overtime" said that the 7-foot big man used this trick to foul. Fans joked about the Philadelphia Harden effect.
With Middleton missing three points, the Bucks are also gone, Maxi made two free throws to seal the win, and Harden watched the game usher in the first win.