James Harden's Tweet Following Sixers' Shorthanded Win vs. Heat
The last time the Philadelphia 76ers played the Miami Heat, the Sixers were coming off of the first night of a back-to-back set of games.
James Harden, who made his Sixers debut four games prior, got the night off. Ever since joining the Sixers via trade from the Brooklyn Nets, Harden's been dealing with hamstring tightness.
Before he was moved to the Sixers on the day of the deadline, Harden was on pace to miss his fourth-straight game with the Nets. When he finally joined the Sixers, Harden missed four more games and sat out from the 2022 NBA All-Star Game.
While Harden played in four-straight games after making his Philadelphia debut, the team made it clear that they have a rest plan for him in place as they want to be extremely cautious with his hamstring.
After Harden missed his first game since making his Sixers debut, the star guard appeared on the court for the next seven games. Last week, Harden played in back-to-back games against the Orlando Magic and the Denver Nuggets.
This week, after facing the Toronto Raptors on Sunday night, Harden mentioned he planned to play once again against the Miami Heat on Monday night. However, his team had other plans.
A couple of hours before the Sixers faced the Heat, team officials confirmed that Harden was getting a planned rest night. Therefore, he was slated to miss his second game since making his debut last month.
While Harden's absence was expected to be significant, the Sixers overcame it. And the ten-time All-Star took to Twitter after the game to praise the next-men-up.
Harden's Praise
The Sixers needed a stellar collective effort from the non-stars on Monday night and they got it. Shake Milton, who hadn't attempted a shot in three games, dropped 20 points in 31 minutes of action off the bench. And after losing his spot in the rotation, Furkan Korkmaz bounced back with an 18-point outing off the bench.
Tobias Harris might've had a rough first half on Monday as he had just four points on 2-7 shooting in 17 minutes but he bounced back in crunch time. By the end of the game, Harris finished with 14 points, eight rebounds, and six assists.
Then, there's Tyrese Maxey. All season long, Maxey has been one of Philadelphia's most reliable contributors as his second-year emergence has been significant for his team. After a solid all-around effort and huge fourth-quarter performance, Maxey finished the night with a game-high of 28 points in 28 minutes. He helped the Sixers secure a 113-106 lead over the top-seeded Miami Heat.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.
