Thanked by the Sixers after yet another elimination in the conference semi-finals, Doc Rivers now finds himself without a bench, and may not be on an NBA bench for the first time since his debut on the Magic bench in 1999. This week, he was thus the guest of the podcast of Bill Simmons, and he took the opportunity to return to his visit to Philadelphia, addressing several questions.
But when the theme James Harden arrived on the table, Doc Rivers spoke of the “difficulty” of coaching the bearded man. The reason ? The two did not have the same vision of “winning basketball”…
“It was complicated, especially because we were fighting for two different ideologies” explains Doc Rivers. “James is so good at playing a certain way, and the way I think you have to play to win is different, because it’s about dropping the ball, passing it around, then getting it back. . I would have liked to have had him younger, when it was easier for him, because the style of play that I demand is not simple. It’s physical, it’s exhausting.”.
However, James Harden finished the regular season’s best passer with an average of 10.7 assists distributed per game. Along with Joel Embiid, they even became the first pair of teammates to be the league’s top scorers and assists since George Gervin and Johnny Moore with Spurs in the 1981/82 season.
However, James Harden’s style of play in the second half of the season did not please his coach.
“I think for the first half of the season we were the best team in the league. I thought James played basketball perfectly. He was the team’s playmaker. He continued to score, but he involved many more others. Then, in the second half of the season, he started scoring more and he was trying to score more. I found we stagnated at times and I think we have changed as a team.”.
Too predictable because of the lack of movement?
Known for his style of play in isolation during his time at Houston, James Harden has undeniably adapted his game to succeed alongside Joel Embiid. That said, there was a limit to what James Harden could or wanted to change in his ways on the pitch. Even though the 2018 MVP finished as the league’s top passer, he’s not much of a threat away from the ball. As soon as he lets go of the leather, he hardly asks for it anymore.
A problem for Doc Rivers, who considers that it makes “The Beard” too easy to defend in the playoffs…
“What makes James great is that he’s one of the greatest one-on-one players of all time. He handles the ball, dribbles, attacks. But it also allows the opponent to be ready… You know where he is and you know where the ball is” details Doc Rivers. “So in the playoffs, when the teams are making a game plan against you every game, doubling you up, making you drop the ball, making it harder for you, it’s easier to do that against James Harden. than against a player like Stephen Curry. How do you get Steph Curry out of a game? He runs everywhere, he moves all the time, it’s difficult “.
The trend was once again confirmed in the playoffs. With the Sixers leading 3-2 to the Celtics, James Harden delivered two of his worst games of the season to close the series, with very little impact in the game.
During Game 6 at home, he only scored 13 points at 4/16 shooting. During Game 7, he did worse with only 9 points at 3/11 shooting. On his last two outings, he has also combined 1/11 from 3-pointers, as well as 10 loss of balls. The Celtics have thus found the parade to erase him from the game in the last two meetings of the series, for what could be the last appearances of James Harden in the Sixers jersey.
| James Harden | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2009-10 | OKAY | 76 | 23 | 40.3 | 37.5 | 80.8 | 0.6 | 2.6 | 3.2 | 1.8 | 2.6 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 0.3 | 9.9 |
| 2010-11 | OKAY | 82 | 27 | 43.6 | 34.9 | 84.3 | 0.5 | 2.6 | 3.1 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 12.2 |
| 2011-12 | OKAY | 62 | 31 | 49.1 | 39.0 | 84.6 | 0.5 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 3.7 | 2.4 | 1.0 | 2.2 | 0.2 | 16.8 |
| 2012-13 | HOO | 78 | 38 | 43.8 | 36.8 | 85.1 | 0.8 | 4.1 | 4.9 | 5.8 | 2.3 | 1.8 | 3.8 | 0.5 | 25.9 |
| 2013-14 | HOO | 73 | 38 | 45.6 | 36.6 | 86.6 | 0.8 | 3.9 | 4.7 | 6.1 | 2.4 | 1.6 | 3.6 | 0.4 | 25.4 |
| 2014-15 | HOO | 81 | 37 | 44.0 | 37.5 | 86.8 | 0.9 | 4.7 | 5.7 | 7.0 | 2.6 | 1.9 | 4.0 | 0.7 | 27.4 |
| 2015-16 | HOO | 82 | 38 | 43.9 | 35.9 | 86.0 | 0.8 | 5.3 | 6.1 | 7.5 | 2.8 | 1.7 | 4.6 | 0.6 | 29.0 |
| 2016-17 | HOO | 81 | 36 | 44.0 | 34.7 | 84.7 | 1.2 | 7.0 | 8.1 | 11.2 | 2.7 | 1.5 | 5.7 | 0.5 | 29.1 |
| 2017-18 ★ | HOO | 72 | 35 | 44.9 | 36.7 | 85.8 | 0.6 | 4.8 | 5.4 | 8.8 | 2.4 | 1.8 | 4.4 | 0.7 | 30.4 |
| 2018-19 | HOO | 78 | 37 | 44.2 | 36.8 | 87.9 | 0.9 | 5.8 | 6.6 | 7.5 | 3.1 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 0.7 | 36.1 |
| 2019-20 | HOO | 68 | 37 | 44.4 | 35.5 | 86.5 | 1.0 | 5.5 | 6.6 | 7.5 | 3.3 | 1.8 | 4.5 | 0.9 | 34.3 |
| 2020-21 * | All Teams | 44 | 37 | 46.6 | 36.2 | 86.1 | 0.8 | 7.1 | 7.9 | 10.8 | 2.3 | 1.2 | 4.0 | 0.8 | 24.6 |
| 2020-21 * | BRK | 36 | 37 | 47.1 | 36.6 | 85.6 | 0.8 | 7.7 | 8.5 | 10.9 | 2.4 | 1.3 | 4.0 | 0.8 | 24.6 |
| 2020-21 * | HOO | 8 | 36 | 44.4 | 34.7 | 88.3 | 0.6 | 4.5 | 5.1 | 10.4 | 1.8 | 0.9 | 4.3 | 0.8 | 24.8 |
| 2021-22 * | All Teams | 65 | 37 | 41.0 | 33.0 | 87.7 | 0.9 | 6.9 | 7.7 | 10.3 | 2.4 | 1.3 | 4.4 | 0.6 | 22.0 |
| 2021-22 * | BRK | 44 | 37 | 41.4 | 33.2 | 86.9 | 1.0 | 7.0 | 8.0 | 10.2 | 2.4 | 1.3 | 4.8 | 0.7 | 22.5 |
| 2021-22 * | PHL | 21 | 38 | 40.2 | 32.6 | 89.2 | 0.6 | 6.5 | 7.1 | 10.5 | 2.3 | 1.2 | 3.4 | 0.2 | 21.1 |
| 2022-23 | PHL | 58 | 37 | 44.1 | 38.5 | 86.7 | 0.7 | 5.4 | 6.1 | 10.7 | 1.9 | 1.2 | 3.4 | 0.5 | 21.0 |
| Total | 1000 | 35 | 44.2 | 36.3 | 86.0 | 0.8 | 4.9 | 5.7 | 7.0 | 2.6 | 1.5 | 3.7 | 0.5 | 24.7 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Shots made / Shots attempted; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def= defensive rebound; Tot = Total bounces; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost bullets; Ct: Counters; Points = Points.
