James Harden Isn't Taking Moral Victories After Loss to Bucks

Sixer star James Harden is playing well, but it doesn't matter unless his team wins.

The Philadelphia 76ers returned to the floor on Thursday night. After a disappointing outing on the road against the defending Eastern Conference Champions, the Boston Celtics, the road remained tough for the Sixers as they hosted Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks. 

Philadelphia’s first-half performance on Thursday wasn’t totally inspiring. When they came out for the second half, the Bucks found a way to expand their lead by as much as 12 points. For the second-straight game, it seemed the Sixers might lose control in the third quarter and take on another lopsided loss.

But Sixers guard James Harden took control and helped engineer a comeback to get his team back into the matchup. In nearly nine minutes on the floor, Harden drained two shots and two free throws for six points. 

In the fourth quarter, Harden turned his play up another notch. By taking 12 shots from the field, Harden knocked down seven of his attempts, along with two free throws, to put up 16 points. Harden’s charge allowed the Sixers to outscore the Bucks 25-17 in the final 12 minutes. 

The Sixers formed a comeback, but they couldn’t close out the game on the final possession. With a tough shot missed by Harden, the Bucks were able to gain possession of the ball and escaped South Philly with a 90-88 victory.

Compared to their season-opening performance in Boston, the Sixers looked much better and had more favorable results in Thursday’s game against Milwaukee. Unfortunately, an unsuccessful comeback wasn’t the goal for the night. 

“We know what we’re capable of,” said Harden after the game. “We got one goal as a team. We know we have the ability to do that. I mean, as much as we don’t want to [make a comeback because] we want to be in the lead as much as possible, we are more than capable and have the ability to come back. We just don’t want to allow ourselves to be in those positions, especially when we can play better defensively.”

On a personal level, Harden’s exceeded expectations to begin the season as he’s scored over 30 points in both matchups. While that’s an encouraging sign for the Sixers’ star, who’s been working on getting back to his normal self after two drama and injury-filled years, the ultimate goal hasn’t been met just yet. 

“We lost two games. I told them no moral victories,” said Sixers coach Doc Rivers. “We played two great teams. You knew from the day they released the schedule that they were coming. We have to expect to win these games. Even while we’re a work in progress, we still want to win these games. We can’t get them back. You have to move on and get back to the next game.”

The Sixers will return to the drawing board on Friday to begin preparing for their matchup on Saturday night when they host the San Antonio Spurs. While the competition gets easier on paper, the Sixers are focused on getting better as they know they need to respect their opponent and pick up their play regardless on Saturday. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.