On May 3, Beijing time, the Eastern Conference semifinals G1, 76ers lost to the Heat 92-106 away, and fell behind their opponents 0-1 in a big score. In the first game without Joel Embiid, the 76ers collapsed abruptly in the second half and eventually lost the game.
After the game, the outside world pushed the responsibility for the loss to Harden. He scored just four points in the second half of the game, epitomizing the 76ers' offensive power outage. Barkley, a famous 76er, criticized Harden by name, arguing that Harden should increase the number of shots.
"I was disappointed because the two teams were very close in time at half-time. In the second half, the Heat improved their form, and Harden only scored 4 points, which is 100% not "aggressive". I mean, he played well in the first half, but for some reason he only scored four points in the second half. If Embiid wasn't on the floor, Harden should have made 25 shots. I didn't think they could win, but the difference in the first half was only 1 point. Harden should have remained super aggressive. ”
Since being traded to the 76ers in February, Harden's performance has been very struggling. Even when Embiid is on the floor, he struggles to find his best form on the offensive end. In his first 21 games for the team, he shot just 40 percent from the field. Since being traded to the 76ers, Harden has never made 20 shots in a single game.
Harden is also well aware that in Embiid's absence, he must take on the responsibility of the team's scorer. In a post-game press conference, Harden said he would increase his aggressiveness. Maybe in the second game we'll see a different side of Harden.