76ers Don’t Miss James Harden

Following the Harden saga, it would’ve been easy to expect Philadelphia to take a while to find its footing, but things could not be going better for Joel Embiid & Co.

It would be hard to imagine a worse offseason and start to the regular season than the one the Sixers had this year.

Coming off its umpteenth second-round playoff exit, Philadelphia saw its second-best player (James Harden) call his general manager a liar and vow never to play for him again, Joel Embiid hinted for the first time that he could be prepared to leave, and the Celtics and Bucks loaded up with massive offseason acquisitions. Then the Harden drama dragged into the actual games, with the team making headlines for not letting him on the plane for its opener in Milwaukee.

Embiid (left) and Maxey are combining for 58 points per game this season :: Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports

And yet somehow, amid all the nonsense, the 76ers have emerged as one of the best teams in the NBA over the first two weeks of the season.

Entering the league’s brief pause for Election Day, Philly is second in the East and tied with Boston for the third-best record overall. The 76ers also have the second-best net rating in the league, tied with Boston at No. 2 in offense while sitting solid at No. 5 in defense.

Embiid and Tyrese Maxey are playing some of the best basketball of their careers, easily the biggest reasons for the hot start.

Embiid, the reigning MVP, has picked up right where he left off, averaging 32.5 points a night on 53.5% shooting, including a blistering 42.9% start from three. Perhaps most impressive, he’s seen an uptick in assists, averaging 6.2 through six games. It’s very, very early, but that number would be a career high. And that extra playmaking is essential in the wake of Harden’s trade to the Clippers. Most notably, Embiid is handing out those dimes without a spike in turnovers. And he’s doing all of this while remaining the team’s defensive anchor.

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Maxey, meanwhile, is taking the leap many expected. He’s one of only three players in the league averaging at least 25 points, seven assists and four rebounds per game. The other two are Luka Dončić and Nikola Jokić. Maxey is putting up those numbers while shooting 50% from the field and 44.2% from three, and he’s assuming more responsibility (and minutes) with Harden gone. Maxey is not only thriving next to Embiid (that duo has a 15.6 net rating in 156 minutes together), he’s also been tasked with keeping bench groups afloat when Embiid sits.

And this is all happening while coach Nick Nurse is still figuring out his rotation with the influx of veterans from the Clippers as a result of the Harden deal. Nicolas Batum played his first game with the team Monday, and in only 17 minutes he knocked down three threes and was a plus-30. (Embiid was beyond dominant in this game vs. Washington, scoring 48 points in only 31 minutes.)

POETRY IN MOTION. pic.twitter.com/s3QvbUdOHu

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) November 7, 2023

Despite being a work in progress, the Sixers haven’t won a game by fewer than seven points. Their last four wins have come by 28, 15, 12 and 18, respectively. Philly’s only loss was by one point, which came on the road against the amped-up Bucks while Harden was still looming over the team.

Though the Harden trade may not have raised the Sixers’ ceiling, there was still something to be said about trading a guy who wasn’t going to play in exchange for capable and willing players. For everything that’s happened since Philly bowed out in the conference semifinals, for the team to be in lockstep with Boston (and ahead of Milwaukee) two weeks into the season is no small accomplishment. After a nightmare-ish summer and training camp, it would have been hard to imagine a better start to the season than this one.