Top Takeaways from DeMar DeRozan, Bulls vs. James Harden, Joel Embiid, 76ers
With a 121-106 triumph over the Chicago Bulls on Monday, the Philadelphia 76ers recorded their fifth win in the six games since James Harden's debut.
Four of the five victories have been decided by at least 15 points. The lone loss occurred without Harden, who rested his hamstring on the back end of his first back-to-back with his new squad.
Philly's domination since uniting Harden and Joel Embiid at the trade deadline has been staggering to see, and the Sixers continued dropping jaws in this tilt. Embiid took center stage with 43 points and 14 rebounds, while Harden had his own double-double with 16 points and 14 assists. Together, the two connected on 17 of their 22 free-throw attempts and paced everyone in plus/minus (plus-14 for Embiid, plus-12 for Harden).
Philadelphia's defense also rose to the occasion and prevented Chicago's All-Star tandem of DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine from ever finding a groove. DeRozan struggled with his shot all night (6-of-17), but salvaged a 23-point night on the strength of his 11-of-12 showing at the foul line. LaVine scored a game-high 24 points, but he shot an uninspiring 8-of-19 from the field and had as many turnovers as assists (five).
Philly's Dynamic Duo Looks Unstoppable
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The Sixers are unbeaten with Harden in the lineup, and they've only had to really sweat out one result, a six-point win over the plucky Cleveland Cavaliers.
It's early, and the competition hasn't quite been murderer's row, but it's hard to be anything other than blown away by how good Philadelphia looks already.
"Like a dream come true," Sixers forward Georges Niang told reporters.
It's still possible to nitpick this team—Philly's list of lockdown wing defenders starts and stops with Matisse Thybulle—but it just doesn't feel necessary. Not yet, anyway.
The chemistry between Harden and Embiid is ahead of schedule and still nowhere near its full growth potential. Tyrese Maxey is leveling up, having averaged 23.5 points on 59.5/61.3/81.5 shooting since Harden's debut. Tobias Harris has fallen back to the fourth option, and while that may eventually make his $36 million salary too onerous to keep, that's a worry for a different day. For now, his over-qualification for the role shows how loaded this roster is at the top.
The Sixers sit three games back of the top-seeded Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference, but the early glimpse of the Harden-Embiid pairing has this club looking like the team to beat to escape the East.
Bulls Need a Signature Win More Than Anyone
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The Bulls have spent much of this season obliterating expectations.
Their .600 winning percentage is their highest since 2014-15. DeRozan has played his way into the MVP race. LaVine earned his All-Star selection. Second-round rookie Ayo Dosunmu will demand All-Rookie first-team consideration. The defense had super-disruptive stretches when Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso were healthy. Billy Donovan might appear on every Coach of the Year ballot.
Chicago is really good. The question, though, is whether this group can break its way into greatness territory.
For that to happen, the Bulls will need to do something they haven't all season: knock off an elite opponent.
The Sixers' win on Monday gave them a 4-0 series sweep of the Bulls, with three of those wins decided by at least nine points. Chicago is 0-3 against the Miami Heat, and only one of those outings was decided by single digits. The Bulls are also winless against the Milwaukee Bucks (0-2), Memphis Grizzlies (0-2), Golden State Warriors (0-2) and Phoenix Suns (0-1).
For context, those are the top three seeds in each conference. And the Bulls are a combined 0-14 against them with more lopsided losses than nail-biters.
This doesn't mean Chicago is incapable of winning these games, and maybe a full-strength version of this squad could change the narrative in the playoffs. Still, it could do wonders for the locker room if the Bulls were to pick up a signature win or two against elite competition during the remainder of the stretch run.
