Hi is in control of the rebounding ball and is in control of destiny.
Judging from the performance this season, Philadelphia is tired of waiting, they want to break through to the Eastern Conference and land on the Finals stage, they were tired of Embiid not having a star teammate by his side, so they chose Harden. And now, they're tired of always attacking in the first few seconds of the timer, so they're opting to trade Harden at any cost.
In terms of statistics alone, the 76ers played well enough last season with the cooperation of Harden and Embiid. The team scored 118 points per 100 rounds3 points, which was the third-highest offensive efficiency in the league that season.
Unfortunately, the cost of these stats is a waste of offensive time. According to relevant statistics, the Philadelphia 76ers' offense last season ranked third slowest in the league in the league, and the direct reason behind this is Harden, because of his presence, Philadelphia will have a lot of dangerous rounds facing eight-second violations every game.
But this season's situation is completely different, with the departure of Harden, the team's defensive line offensive main task has been given to Tyrese Maxey, and Nick Nurse's coaching ideas are completely different from the previous Rivers, especially in terms of the team's offensive speed, which is completely different from last season.
Looking at the stats, the team's offensive speed has improved from the third-to-last last season to the 13th in the league, and the average dribble time per round this season has decreased by nearly one second compared to last season, which may seem insignificant, but in an offensive time of only 24 seconds per round, one second is enough to change a lot.
The biggest difference in this shift is the team's tactical design this season. So far, Nick Nurse's tactical start for the Philadelphia 76ers has a very obvious feature, which consists of a ball-handler who quickly advances from the backcourt, and then uses some pick-and-roll screens or hand-to-hand phones to hand the ball to the wing offensive point, and then plays around this starting point.
With such a simple enough move, the Philadelphia 76ers can have an initial advantage against most teams in the league with their speed and athleticism.
You can also see how easy it is to design this tactic in the literal sense, and simple enough to apply to every player on the team. The most frequent is the duo of Maxey and Embiid, and we've seen Harris and Oubre involved in this tactical design before. These guys can switch between the ball-holding point and the attacking endpoint role, and are ready to take on the task of running and catching the ball or initiating the attack.
And beyond this most basic design, Philadelphia retains plenty of variability in this regard. In some rounds, we can also see players with the ball pretending to pass the ball and then dribbling deep inside on their own, or moving to the weak side of the defense and performing hand-dribbling passes with teammates.
Especially in the early stages of the season, Nick Nurse likes to set the final end point of this tactical start in Oubre, who is in the open position. As a representative of the team's excellent physical condition, if he can attack at the open point on the perimeter, it will be quite difficult for the opponent to limit him in front defense.
Looking back at the team's performance last season, they boasted an MVP-caliber Embiid and James Harden, one of the best pick-and-roll offensive players in league history. However, the latter, as the team's offensive starting point, is always Xi to the slow pace of the offense, resulting in the team only launching a wave of offense in a limited offensive period, largely ignoring the role of Maxey and Harris in the team's offense.
And with Harden leaving Philadelphia and Maxey taking over the reins of the team on the guard, his talent is beginning to be truly unleashed. Coupled with the fact that he has Oubre, Harris and high-quality wingers such as Covington and Batum after the trade, Embiid can still play at an absolute dominating level in the same position. It seems to be a helpless transaction, but it has rebuilt a new and more complete system.
Judging from the team's current performances and results, Nick Nurse, a head coach known for his defensive characteristics, has indeed created a new Philadelphia lineup that is both offensive and defensive, and the team's offensive opportunities are no longer limited to a few players, but the team has its own role, constantly showing their athleticism and aggression in rotation and off-ball running.
Despite losing his career-biggest MVP-level teammate, Embiid's form hasn't changed much, but his individual style of play has become more self-centered and still holds an unshakable place in the core of the team.
Without Harden as a playmaking passer, Embiid's most common offensive pattern this season has been his and Maxey's pick-and-roll offense on the left side of the court. In these rounds, the defender's center of gravity always Xi falls on Maxey, the point of possession, forcing him to the corner of the court with high-pressure defense as much as possible, cutting off the blocking connection between him and Embiid inside.
This is also based on Maxi's relatively poor left-hand hand, and the defender will try not to leave him with the ball in the middle. And once he falls into the trap set by the defender, this stage requires Embiid to step up and solve the problem.
After Maxey draws the opponent's defensive center of gravity, Embiid needs to take on the follow-up attack, whether it's a three-pointer from the perimeter or a misplaced single that goes in, which is the offensive environment he's been wanting since last season. It's also where Embiid was criticized by fans after Philadelphia went out in the playoffs last season, but fortunately, he has done a good job in this area this season.
According to the relevant statistics of this season, so far, the Philadelphia 76ers have delivered the second-highest offensive efficiency in the league, second only to the Indiana Pacers led by Tyres Haliburton. Behind the efficient offensive performance, the Philadelphia 76ers still have a defensive efficiency that ranks among the top five in the league, which is the basis for them to be able to secure the top position in the East this season.
While there's still a long way to go for the rest of the season, and there's no guarantee that this team will continue to be as efficient as they are in the rest of the game, it's safe to assume that Philadelphia did take a better path of their own after dropping Harden.
And given Harden's embarrassing situation after joining the Clippers, it is indeed difficult for us to vote for him in favor of the breakup, at least so far, it may be that Harden is the side that relies more on the 76ers, not the 76ers who need Harden.