At 112-97, Philadelphia beat the Raptors to freeze the series to 2-0. Behind the excellent performance of Embiid, Harden and Maxi's "dual core one star" with 68 points, 26 rebounds and 14 assists, one-man transformation is the key.
Harden led Philadelphia to a 14+6+3+2 victory over the Raptors
The Raptors are grassroots divisions, and their play style is mainly shooting, VanVleet and Trent shooting three-pointers from the outside, Siakam, Anunoby and Achuva/Boucher/Birch rushing forward, and the whole team's defensive end of the local pinch steal to fight back, but they face Philadelphia, led by Embiid and Harden, and the shooting tactics are directly invalidated for the following reasons:
First, Embiid's absolute superstar ability.
In active duty, Embiid and Jokic are the best fifth positions in the league, and no raptors can match him, so the emperor can destroy the raptors' shooting tactics on the inside, a typical picture:
Embiid made a 2+1 layup
Embiid played one-on-one inside, the Raptors trio contracted the inside line, and the emperor was able to "grab 1 and grab 3" to fight the offensive rebound to 2+1. As long as it enters the reasonable collision zone, Embiid is basically insoluble, not to mention that he still has the ability to shoot from a medium and long distance, and Embiid contributed 31 points and 11 rebounds in 9 of 16 in the whole game, with efficient finishing ability and backcourt rebound protection, which can contain the Raptors' counterattack, and also directly destroy their "shooting" tactics and suppress the first element of the Raptors.
Second, Harden's tandem and defense.
Harden is far from returning to the peak mode of the Rockets, but he is facing Van Vleet and Trent, and the physical talent and ability are several grades apart, so even if Harden only contributed 14 points in 3 of 9, as long as he breaks through, he can either cause a foul to stand on the free throw line, or continue to compress the Raptors defense and help his teammates score, the most typical picture:
Harden orchestrated three points
Harden arc top pretends to break through to attract the pinch, a hit pass to the air to cut Harris, the latter then passed the weak side of Green, the iron hit the country is not wanted!
What's even more gratifying is that Harden has significantly improved the intensity of defense this game, the most typical picture:
Harden steals a layup
Raptors fast bottom ball want to start? Harden flew straight to the top of Siakam's head to complete the steal and make a layup.
In the whole game, Harden's all-round output of 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks, on the outside, that is, revitalizing the team's offense, can also contain the Raptors offense, playing an absolute superstar role.
Third, Maxi's blowout.
In the last game, Maxi became a miracle soldier, and in this game, although Coach Nas tried everything to try to contain it, there was no way, because harden and Embiid's containment force made the players powerless, the most typical case:
Harden, Maxi and Embiid fought back together
Maxi and Embiid arced at the top of the attack, Harden cut off the pass to complete the steal, a quarterback long pass, Maxie has rushed to the basket, VanVleet and Boucher have desperately returned to block Maxi's counterattack, but Embiid followed up, catching the little brother's return pass to complete 2+1.
With lightning speed, stable projection ability, and Harden's passing ability for half a season before his arrival, Maxi has become another potential superstar in the league, once again bombing 23 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists in the game, becoming the third leader behind the double core.
Note that speaking of Maxi's growth into the third leader of the team, we have to mention the role of another man who has promoted Philadelphia's chemical reaction to getting better and better, Harris's "transformation".
Fourth, Harris, upgraded 3D.
Originally from the Clippers to Philadelphia, until the arrival of Harden this season, Harris has been the third leader of Philadelphia, although the giant's color is limited, but at least he himself will not shake the faith, and the past two games, Harris is eye-catching, he seems to have accepted the fourth man role, becoming the team's upgraded 3D, the most typical picture:
Maxi assisted Harris with three points
Maxi arc top ball to attract the bag clip, Harris right arc top to receive the ball directly three points, the picture is very simple, but the problem of the explanation: in the past Harris is the third ball holder of the team, especially he also has a hand ball back play ability, and now? He ceded the ball for Maxie, and he became a 3D player like Green, and it was an upgraded version, reflected in the data side:
In 7 of 11 shots, 3 three-pointers, three counter-attacks, just 1 mid-range, almost no past singles with the ball, and only 1 assist, completely 3D; in addition, he spelled out the team's second 10 rebounds and the team's first 3 blocks, trying to help the team from the defensive end. With 20 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks, Harris transitioned to an upgraded version of 3D, allowing Philadelphia to complete the qualitative change.
In addition to hardening harden and Embiid's absolute superstar ability, Maxi's becoming the first leader, as well as the stability of the whole team's three-pointers and the upgrade of defense, are actually closely related to Harris's willingness to transform the team into a 3D role, which is the key to the team's ability to produce the ideal chemical reaction to win.