Score of the 76ers vs. Heat takeaways: James Harden, Joel Embiid lead Philly to crucial Game 4 win over Miami

The Philadelphia 76ers have new life in their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Miami Heat following their 116-108 victory in Game 4 on Sunday night. After losing the first two games without the services of Joel Embiid, Philadelphia rallied at a. importantly on his home floor with the team’s MVP candidate on the floor.

Ultimately, Jimmy Butler led all scorers with 40 points, but it was the Sixers’ balanced offense, led by James Harden’s 31 points, nine assists and seven rebounds that ultimately led to Philadelphia’s series-evening win. . These two teams will meet in South Beach on Tuesday night in Game 4 with the opening pick set for 7:30 p.m. Here are the biggest takeaways from Game 4.

1. Will the real James Harden stand up?

James Harden was Philadelphia’s best player on Sunday. The numbers, in a vacuum, were stellar: 31 points, nine assists and seven rebounds is the kind of production a team should expect from a player they’ve invested as much in as Philly has invested in Harden. He made almost as many 3-pointers (six) as the Heat as a team (seven).

And yet, I can’t help but wonder what it says about Harden that this is the kind of performance he’s being praised for. after all he averaged just shy of 34 points, eight assists and seven rebounds two seasons ago. This was not the peak of James Harden. This wasn’t even a throwback to his old self. He only made two 2-point shots in the entire game. He was certainly more aggressive as an attacker, and his 10 free throw attempts were the second-most he’s taken this postseason. But it’s not like he rediscovered the old first step of his. Harden had shot 28.3 percent on his 3-point range in Philly’s past eight playoff games. That’s not who he really is. But neither is he 6-for-10, and without that good shot, conversations surrounding his performance probably won’t change much.

Scoring isn’t all Harden does. Even in his committed state, he has been a stellar playmaker for Philly during the postseason. But I don’t think we’re at the point where we can see 30-point outings as something we can frequently expect from Harden just yet. It’s entirely possible that shot variation will turn against him in Game 5 and we’ll be right back where we started.

2. The butler did it

Jimmy Butler is a great scorer, but not always particularly enthusiastic. He likes to play in Miami’s equal offense. He’s not going to take 20 shots every night by choice. This postseason just forced his hand. He scored 40 in the Game 4 loss, but until Bam Adebayo’s late-game scoring binge, he had three times as many points as all of his teammates. After averaging 21.4 points per game in the regular season, Butler has nearly 30 in the playoffs. He scored just under 40 percent of Miami’s points in the two games these teams just played in Philadelphia.

The question here is … can anyone else step up in the Heat’s offense? Anyone at all? Kyle Lowry is dealing with a serious hamstring injury. “I would put it this way, you don’t want to play with it,” lowry said after Game 4. The Heat have never asked Adebayo to carry a major load in shot creation. That’s all Tyler Herro’s job, but he’s only shot 9-for-27 over the last two games.

Is it time to dust off Duncan Robinson? Miami’s $90 million shooter has made eight 3-pointers in his first playoff game against the Hawks and has barely been seen since. At the very least, a few minutes from Robinson could make life easier for the rest of the offense, because Butler can’t score 40 every night.

3. Miami’s main weakness is being exposed

Miami’s offense around Butler has been a problem all series, but their offense in the fourth quarter has been a concern all season. The Heat ranked 21st in fourth-quarter offensive rating this season and 24th in deciding offensive rating. This is a team designed to stifle you defensively for the first 43 minutes so you don’t need to score much in the last five. When it does? The Heat are in trouble.

Having Lowry as the organizer would make a big difference, but it doesn’t look like he’s going to be healthy enough to have much of an impact in this series. Herro, even when he is scoring, presents different problems. Philly chased him into oblivion in the regular season, and if Harden feels comfortable attacking the basket again, he’ll try to do it this series as well. The Heat responded by doubling up on Harden on those hunting attempts several times in the fourth quarter, but Harden is such a good passer that playing that way is extremely dangerous. Adebayo does not space the ground. Tucker does more in theory than in practice. Miami’s late-game offense too often boils down to “hey, Jimmy, do you think you can create something?”

That’s not a fixable problem in the middle of a playoff series. Miami’s goal should be to win the first three quarters for the fourth to be less of an issue. They simply have fewer ways to generate points in the final minutes than the Sixers.