Joel Embiid on Harden: 'Everyone expected him to be the Rockets' Harden, but he's not him anymore' / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: AFP – Scanpix Credit AFP – Scanpix

After the loss to the Miami Heat last night, The Philadelphia 76ers were eliminated from the Eastern Conference semifinals for the fourth time in five years.

Philadelphia 76ers / Schedule

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After acquiring James Harden at the trade deadline, the Philadelphia 76ers hoped this would finally be the year they break through and make it into the conference finals and beyond in the NBA playoffs.

Alhough, Harden was a non-factor in the Game 6 against Miami, taking just nine shots, including two in the second half, and scoring 11 points.

Another 76ers superstar Joel Embiid gavehis own explanation about The Beard‘s performance being very straightfoward.

"Since we got him, everybody expected the Houston James Harden," Embiid said. "But that's not who he is anymore. He's more of a playmaker. I thought, at times, he could have been, as all of us could have been, more aggressive. All of us whether it was Tyrese Maxey or Tobias Harris or guys coming off the bench.

Though, Embiid didn‘t want to blame nor Harden, nor any other player for the loss in Eastern semifinals.

"Everybody's got to get better," Embiid said. "It's not just not just about me or Harden. From 1 through 15, there's a reason why we lost to Miami. That means we all were not good enough. So everybody just has to be better."

Harden averaged 19.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 6.6 assists in the series against the Heat.

However, with the exception of the Brooklyn Nets' series against the Milwaukee Bucks last season, where Harden played throughout the injuries, that was his worst series since 2012, the last in Oklahoma.

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