If it weren't for the ambivalence and psychological problems, I think most people would still be more optimistic about the combination of Simmons and Embiid. After all, their talent is at the top level in the league, and the two of them can build a different future for Philadelphia. Of course, this premise is that Simmons can practice projection to some extent, and management can also find a third giant that can match them. But now that the deal has been made, we need to focus on the new lineup. The emergence of Harden has indeed made Philadelphia have a different change. What is even more rare is that the 76ers have also found their own Western Emperor in other aspects.
Yes, I'm talking about Maxi. The emergence of Harden has allowed Maxi's value to be further developed, and his data has grown to an incredible extent. In the first four games with Harden, Maxie's average per game grew directly to 26.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists. Even more outrageous is that Maxi's overall shooting percentage is more than 64 percent and his three-point shooting percentage is more than 70 percent. Some people say that such a competition sample is too small to see anything. But you know, the highlights of these games have proved that Harden is injecting vitality into Philadelphia and has established a good chemistry with many players in the team.
Harden is indeed a leader who can bring amplification to other players, and even Embiid has made more significant progress under Harden's leadership. We've said many times that Harden's arrival freed Embiid and freed up his offensive space. Before that, Embiid did not dare to be so extravagant. Why? Because the pulling power of the outside line is not enough. Truth be told, Harden rarely has such an experience either. Because no one could give him such a good internal line to contain before, so that he could act arbitrarily on the outside line. So from this point of view, the partnership of two people should be regarded as a win-win situation.
For most people, the pairing of Harden and Embiid should be easier to understand, after all, one is an outside line, the other is an inside line, and both people maintain dominance in their respective regions. So why can there be a good chemical reaction between Harden and Maxi, and even some people joke that Harden is used to assist Maxi's remarks? This also starts with the actual performance of the two people.
In fact, Maxi is a good player in his own right. In high school, Maxi also enjoyed a high reputation. At that time, he was also one of the five-star high school students, and because of his solid skills, many scouts believed that this was a player who could enter the lottery area. But in fact, friends who pay attention to the draft should know that Maxi's actual draft pick is 21. Why didn't you go as the scouts expected? Is it because of injuries or late performance? Not really! It's these teams that aren't interested in this type of player.
A second-position player with a height of only 1 meter 91 is definitely not qualified. As we all know, the qualified height of the second position is 1 meter 98, which is the height of God. No matter how bad it is, it must be Wade's standard. It's just that Maxie's figure has not even reached this threshold, and because Maxie has performed very generally in the trial before, there are many teams that think that this is just a less qualified number two position, and if this player is selected with the lottery draft pick in the lottery area, it will be a bit of a loss. Out of caution, Maxi did not miss it until the 21st pick in the first round.
So predictably, the player's own ability can support the current data, he just lacks a catalyst. The emergence of Harden is the best chemical agent that Maximi has been able to highlight. Max knew what his weaknesses were, so he had been practicing shooting like crazy after being selected, just to let everyone know that as a guard player with only the size of a point guard, he could score points in the league and do it well.
Before Harden arrived, Maxi's mission was to replace part of Simmons's mission, namely organization. It's just that Maxi's organizational ability is very general, and he can't coordinate tactics for his teammates, and he can't complete good assists. So at that time, Maxi was a joke in the eyes of fans. In comparison, however, Maxi's attack is remarkable. His most common tactics are switching offenses, point jump shots, and blocking with interior players. At the beginning, everyone was not optimistic about the jump shot problem, after Maxi's hard training, this season can also get 1.08 points per round, more than nearly 80% of the players. This is a player with obvious tendencies, no way to organize, just can score. So Harden is very good at helping him solve this part of the problem.
Harden came and took over the organizational problems of the outside line, and Maxi could focus entirely on offense. At this time, Maxy has completely become a quarterback, and Harden knows Maxy's means, so in the first few games of the run-in, he has been making balls for Maxy, trying to stimulate the vitality of this young man. Apparently, Harden did. Not only did he make Maxy's conversion offense more efficient, but Harden's assists were never soft on Maxie, who found empty opportunities. Basically, as soon as Maxy runs into place, Harden's ball can immediately keep up. For them, it's a game. Of course, Harden has long been accustomed to such scenes. But for Maxi, this is a rare opportunity that he must take advantage of.
Maxi's hard training has paid off in many ways this season. Maxi's three-point shooting percentage increased to more than 40 percent, compared to less than 30 percent in college. At that time, everyone was not optimistic about Maxi, and one of the reasons was that his shooting was not stable enough. But now Maxi has proved that he is a genius who can be cultivated. At the same time, Maxi's defense is also trustworthy. His pace is fast and he can keep up with the rhythm of his opponent's attack. At the same time, Maxi's defensive prediction ability is relatively strong, and he can directly see the opponent's next move. Coupled with good defensive pressure, The quality of Maxi's defense on the outside is still outstanding.
Sending Simmons away, many Philadelphia fans were very heartbroken. If Simmons can let go of the mustard, there is still hope for philadelphia in the future. Now, people are more willing to believe that Maxi will become one of the most important assets of the team's future. Before this, maxi's team had not noticed, and it was estimated that the intestines were all remorseful.