After yesterday's G7 loss, Rivers thanked Harden to the media, stating: "I respect Harden's choice, sometimes he thinks he shouldn't do it but does it anyway, and as a coach I am grateful that he can understand."
Let's first understand Rivers' current general status in the 76ers, first of all, the 76ers are roughly divided into two groups, which are represented by Mo Fat and Harden, which I temporarily call the Rocket Gang, and the other is the 76ers Gang represented by Embiid and Rivers, Mo Fat is actually far less powerful in the 76ers than in the Rockets period, and in previous media interviews, Mo Fat also revealed verbal hints such as Embiid being the cornerstone of the team.
Secondly, Embiid still expressed his appreciation for Rivers after the game, and kept expressing the word great, indicating that Embiid still tends to keep Lao Li, so the retention of Lao Li in the new season is basically a high probability, so if Lao Li stays, Harden is basically inevitable.
Celtics guard White was also interviewed, and White said: "This series is extremely tough, we have to use our best defender to lead Harden, and when Harden plays, you know, it's too much pressure on us." So I think Rivers is not unaware that the winning point is Harden, but first of all, to appease Embiid, Lao Li is engaged in administration, so he is more proficient in the area of human affairs, and only by letting Embiid support himself will he be safe in the position of coach.
Then that is to say, Lao Li will most likely not go in the new season, or will use Embiid as the team's first offensive core, and this is where Harden is dissatisfied, if it is still this way of playing, Harden also understands that staying here to win the championship is far away, it is better to plan early!