PHILADELPHIA–The Philadelphia 76ers have two of the top players in the league in the form of Joel Embiid and James Harden. The two of them just have this ability to dominate the game in the pick-and-roll due to Harden’s elite playmaking and Embiid’s ruthless scoring.
In Saturday’s 126-119 win over the Denver Nuggets, Embiid had 47 points and 18 rebounds to lead the Sixers to the win while Harden had 17 points and 13 assists. The two of them continue to be a dominant pairing and it’s why the Sixers are considered a legitimate contender in the Eastern Conference.
Before the contest, Nuggets coach Michael Malone gushed about the Embiid and Harden duo and how tough it is to stop both players.
“Joel, we all understand the problems that he presents on a given night,” Malone started. “His ability to dominate with his scoring, his rebounding, his playmaking, and the different ways that he can score and you have to give James Harden a lot of credit. Throughout your career, maybe your role changes, and what you need to do to help your team win at a high level may change, but we still understand what James is capable of.”
When one remembers Harden’s career, they are going to remember him mostly for being one of the elite scorers the game has ever seen. However, he had adjusted his game in order to make things work with Embiid and take advantage of the talent surrounding him and the big fella.
“If you look at the last 10 years in the league, James kinda revolutionized the game,” Malone added. “The scoring, the shot-making, the ability to draw fouls, and get to the foul line, so when you couple two guys like that together, obviously, that’s a lot of shooting that Phily has, and having two great players that can score at will it seems and you surround them with some really capable of role type players, and you have a chance to do something special.”
As the Sixers move forward, they have to take advantage of these two elite talents on the roster. Those two give them a chance to beat any team in the league in the playoffs.
“It is a challenge guarding Joel,” Malone added. “Not one player can guard him one-on-one. It’s a team effort and you can say the same thing about guarding James Harden.”
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