Philadelphia 76ers

The Philadelphia 76ers were hoping that the duo of James Harden and Joel Embiid would lead the team to postseason success this year, but things didn't play out as expected.

The Sixers were sent home in the second round, falling to the Miami Heat, and Harden and Embiid noticeably struggled to develop any consistent chemistry.

While speaking on an episode of The Ryen Russillo Podcast, Philadelphia forward Georges Niang discussed the tricky dynamic between the team's two star players. Niang explained that Embiid simply wasn't the type of center that Harden was used to playing with, and the lack of practice time together didn't help matters.

"It's an adjustment, right? James is playing with centers like Clint Capela, who's rolling to the rim. You know, not an ISO center like Joel or someone that catches it on the block," Niang said. "So sometimes James would get caught up, you know, trying to ISO and Joel is posting up and—what it really was is, you need chemistry and practice time and we didn’t have a lot of that considering when the trade went down."

The Sixers acquired Harden in February at the trade deadline in a blockbuster deal with the Brooklyn Nets as part of the package for Ben Simmons. In 21 regular-season games, Harden averaged 21 points on 40.2 percent shooting from the field and 32.6 percent from three-point range.

Harden's production dipped further in the postseason. He averaged 18.6 points in 12 games and he failed to reach the 20-point mark in four out of the six contests in the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Heat.

Niang blamed Harden's struggles on a lack of clarity on his role within Philadelphia's offense.

"So there's a tough blend to find: Alright, when are we going to have James, you know, come off and ISO and have the lane open with Joel out there," Niang said. "Or when are we going to have James be a creator and playmaker for other guys and put Joel in a pick-and-roll or different things like that, or space the floor. So it was a tough dynamic."

Harden has a $47.37 million player option for the 2022-23 season remaining on his contract, and he indicated after the Sixers' playoff loss that he intends to remain in Philadelphia. Niang said he believes that a full summer together will work wonders towards fixing the chemistry issues within the team.

"He’s catching a lot of heat from other people and they're like, 'He needs to be better,'" Niang said. "But at the end of the day, when he has a full summer to get his legs up under him and you know obviously we have time to practice with training camp, I think it's going to be a lot better."

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid is hard at work on the practice court despite having undergone surgery to repair separate thumb and finger injuries one week ago.

The Ringer's Kevin O'Connor reported Monday that Embiid "is already working this offseason on perimeter attacks and finishing with touch at the rim."

"Embiid and the Sixers hope he can become even more dynamic bringing the ball up the floor himself on the break and driving in the half court," per O'Connor. "... If Embiid expands his perimeter skill set, it could alleviate pressure on [James] Harden and Tyrese Maxey to be the sole creators."

The five-time All-Star was one of the NBA's best players this season, finishing runner-up to the Denver Nuggets' Nikola Jokic in the MVP voting. He was the scoring champion (30.6 points per game) while averaging 11.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.5 blocks.

There's only so much more a team can ask of a player who put up those numbers and finished with a 37.2 percent usage rate, per Basketball Reference.

But improving Embiid's game around the margins might be required in order for the Sixers to get themselves closer to a championship.

There's a reason Philadelphia acquired Harden despite watching Maxey make significant strides in his game. The team clearly needed a star who could operate on the perimeter and ease some of the offensive burden on Embiid.

Considering his game has noticeably declined over multiple seasons, the Houston Rockets version of Harden may never come back beyond a monster performance here and there. Assuming that's the case, the demands on Embiid will continue to grow.

There's no question the 7-footer is a physical marvel who can bang against other bigs inside or lead the break in transition.

Still, one can't help but feel the Sixers are attempting to alter Embiid's playing style in order to cover for a wider failure to build the right supporting cast around the 28-year-old.

Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey believes his game reached a new level this season after the Sixers acquired James Harden from the Brooklyn Nets.

Speaking to Brandon Robinson of Bally Sports, Maxey said he felt he "blossomed" when Harden arrived in terms of knowing when to be aggressive as a scorer and playmaker:

The 21-year-old Maxey took a massive leap forward in his second NBA season, averaging 17.5 points, 4.3 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.8 three-pointers made per game while shooting 48.5 percent from the field and 42.7 percent from beyond the arc.

His performance this season was made even more impressive by the fact that he averaged just 8.0 points and 2.0 assists per game as a rookie after the 76ers selected him 21st overall in the 2020 NBA draft out of Kentucky.

Philadelphia made the trade for Harden just ahead of the deadline in February, sending Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and two first-round draft picks to the Brooklyn Nets.

There was some concern about how Harden and Maxey would co-exist in the Sixers backcourt, but their skill sets seemed to mesh well.

From the time Harden made his 76ers debut on Feb. 25 through the remainder of the regular season, Maxey averaged 18.7 points, 3.5 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 2.5 three-pointers per contest.

Maxey also raised his level of play during the postseason, averaging 20.8 points, 3.9 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 2.2 trifectas made.

The Sixers experienced a disappointing second-round playoff exit for the second year in a row and fourth time in five years, but there is reason for optimism moving forward.

In addition to Maxey and his constant improvement, the Sixers boast a dominant center in Joel Embiid, who finished second in the NBA MVP voting this season.

The biggest immediate question mark for Philly is the status of Harden, who could opt out of his contract this offseason, become a free agent and sign elsewhere.

Other possibilities include Harden opting in for next season or the 76ers signing him to a new contract that spans multiple years.

The fact that Maxey actually seemed to play a bit better after Harden's arrival could convince the Sixers to keep him in the fold, but even if Harden leaves, the combo of Maxey and Embiid gives them a chance to be successful for many years to come.

The Brooklyn Nets will defer their first-round draft selection acquired from the Philadelphia 76ers in the Ben Simmons-James Harden trade to 2023.

The Sixers confirmed the news Wednesday, per Noah Levick of NBC Sports Philadelphia.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN first reported the update, noting:

The Sixers keep No. 23 for this June's draft and Nets get the 2023 pick for use in future trades or to make for themselves. Nets can hope that 2023 pick moves up the draft board based on success of Philadelphia’s coming season.

Brooklyn received Simmons, guard Seth Curry, center Andre Drummond and a protected 2027 first-round draft pick in addition to the selection now deferred to 2023. The Nets sent Harden and forward Paul Millsap to Philadelphia.

Wojnarowski broke down more details on the draft picks when the deal initially took place at February's trade deadline.

The Nets will not have a 2022 draft pick after deferring their choice to 2023. The 76ers only have the No. 23 overall selection when the draft takes place June 23.

Both teams aren't looking to build through the draft right now, however, as they both have superstar cores in place.

The question is how they'll reach the Eastern Conference mountaintop. The Nets last made the NBA Finals in 2002-03, when the franchise was in New Jersey, while the Sixers haven't won the East since 2000-01.

Both teams have big decisions to make. Kevin Durant and Simmons are signed to long-term deals in Brooklyn, but seven-time All-Star Kyrie Irving, who holds a $36.9 million player option for 2022-23, could be a free agent as early as this offseason.

As ESPN's Nick Friedell noted, Nets general manager Sean Marks was "noncommittal" when asked about Irving's long-term status with the team.

As far as the 76ers go, MVP runner-up Joel Embiid is in Philly through 2026-27 on a supermax extension.

Harden holds a 2022-23 player option worth $47.3 million. He also struggled at the end of the 2021-22 regular season and during the playoffs. ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported last month that people around the league don't expect the 76ers to sign Harden to a max deal.

The Nets fell in a four-game sweep to the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics in the first round. The 76ers lost to the Eastern Conference runner-up Miami Heat in the second round.