James Harden scored a game-high 42 points and he drained the game-winning three pointer from the right corner with 19 seconds remaining in overtime to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 116-115 game four win over the Boston Celtics. The series is tied 2-2 and shifts back to Boston for a pivotal game five. Harden shot 16-23 from the field, and he had a game-high nine assists plus eight rebounds, a game-high four steals, and one blocked shot. In the long, distinguished history of the 76ers franchise, there is a short list of players who had at least 40 points, at least five rebounds, and at least five assists in the same playoff game: Wilt Chamberlain, Julius Erving, Allen Iverson, and James Harden.
Harden was awful in the previous two games, shooting a combined 5-28 from the field. He is obviously a talented, All-Star caliber player, but elite level greatness is defined by consistent high level production resulting in team success, not sporadic glittering performances sandwiched around terrible games.
Joel Embiid scored 34 points, grabbed a team-high 13 rebounds, and passed for four assists--including the feed to Harden for the game-winning shot. Embiid was not credited with a blocked shot, but his presence in the paint anchored Philadelphia's defense. Embiid became noticeably fatigued down the stretch, which limited his effectiveness at both ends of the court: he became a step slower defensively, and he became a much more passive player offensively, though he still managed to make some key plays.
Tyrese Maxey was the only other 76er who scored in double figures (14 points).
All five Boston starters scored in double figures, as did Sixth Man of the Year Award winner Malcolm Brogdon (19 points). Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 24 points while also snaring a game-high 18 rebounds, dishing for six assists, and blocking four shots--but it was a tale of two halves for Boston's best player: he missed his first eight field goal attempts of the game (the worst such stretch at the start of any game in his playoff career), and he finished the first half with just two points on 1-9 field goal shooting. Tatum's slow start is a major reason that the Celtics trailed 59-50 at halftime and had to fight uphill for most of the game. Jaylen Brown scored 23 points on 10-16 field goal shooting. He was the only Celtic who made more than half of his field goal attempts, and when he had the ball he was the most aggressive and consistent Celtic throughout the entire course of the game; it was unfortunate for the Celtics that he did touch the ball often during the overtime, and that he did not attempt a single shot during the extra session.
Despite the Celtics' cold start and Harden's hot shooting, the Celtics battled all the way back from a 16 point deficit to take a 105-100 lead after Brogdon drained a three pointer with 2:04 remaining in regulation. NBA teams leading by five with two minutes or less remaining are overwhelming statistical favorites to win, but the 76ers tied the score less than one minute later after Harden scored on a drive and P.J. Tucker converted a putback plus a free throw to complete a three point play. Marcus Smart put the Celtics back on top by making a pair of free throws before Harden tied the game on a drive. The Celtics inbounded with 16.4 seconds remaining after Harden scored, and they elected to attack without calling a timeout, culminating with Smart missing a three pointer as time expired. Boston Coach Joe Mazzulla is being criticized for not using a timeout in that situation. Calling a timeout would have enabled the Celtics to advance the ball to midcourt without any time coming off of the clock and then run a set play--but it also would have permitted the 76ers to make situational substitutions and orchestrate a set defense. It is unlikely that the Celtics would have obtained a better shot after a timeout than the one that Smart took, and the Celtics executed that play to perfection in terms of leaving no time for the 76ers to shoot, ensuring that the Celtics would either win in regulation or fight for victory in overtime.
It would be more appropriate to question Boston Coach Joe Mazzulla's clock management and timeout usage at the end of the overtime session. After Harden's three pointer put the 76ers up by one point with 19 seconds remaining, the Celtics did not call a timeout and then proceeded to drain all of the time off of the clock without attempting a shot. Smart's three pointer for the win swished through the net, but he released the ball after time ran out. This late game scenario differed from what happened at the end of regulation because here the Celtics were trailing, which means that they could have used a timeout, advanced the ball to halfcourt before inbounding, run a set play for the game-winning shot attempt, and still had enough time left (plus one more timeout) to extend the game if they missed the shot and did not get the rebound.
Harden's game-winning shot happened because of another strategic breakdown: Brown left Harden alone in the corner to double team Embiid, giving Harden an open shot for three while the Celtics led by two; even if Embiid had scored against single coverage, the game would have been tied and the Celtics would have had the opportunity to go for a win. Brown's play was a very low percentage gamble at the worst possible time, and he admitted as much during his postgame media availability.
Modern day media coverage is focused on narratives and hot takes; it is fine to point out suboptimal plays and decisions, but it is not necessary or appropriate to draw sweeping conclusions based on one game. This game did not (1) redeem all of Harden's previous playoff failures, (2) prove that Tatum is not a great player, or (3) establish that Mazzulla is in over his head. It is possible that (1) Harden will play a major role in a championship run, (2) Tatum will demonstrate that he just cannot handle big moments, and (3) Mazzulla is not equipped to coach a championship team--but a game whose outcome was not determined until a three pointer was launched a fraction of a second after time expired is a flimsy hook upon which to attempt to support such definitive narratives. Harden has a full body of work to evaluate, Tatum is a young player who has already had many big playoff games and will presumably play in many other playoff games (including at least two more in this series!), and Mazzulla is in the process of completing his first full season at the helm.
A calm, rational observer understands that the Celtics still have the upper hand in this series by virtue of owning homecourt advantage, so it is too soon to conclude the narrative for this series--never mind writing the definitive evaluation of Harden, Tatum, or Mazzulla (though we do have a full career's worth of data on Harden, as long as he is still an active player he has a chance to alter his story and improve his legacy).