PHILADELPHIA — Remember when, in seasons past, the 76ers had a tough time remaining healthy?
Well, that’s the case once again.
James Harden missed his fourth consecutive game Saturday night with a right foot tendon sprain. De’Anthony Melton, who was Harden’s replacement in the starting lineup, also was out with left side back stiffness.
So that left combination guard Tyrese Maxey as the only reliable ballhandler against the Atlanta Hawks. It didn’t prevent them from posting a 121-109 victory at the Wells Fargo Center.
They improved to 6-7 and avenged Thursday’s loss to the Hawks (8-5) at State Farm Arena.
Because of the injuries, the Sixers rolled out a starting lineup of P.J. Tucker, Tobias Harris, Joel Embiid, Matisse Thybulle, and Maxey.
On this night, Shake Milton and seldom-used Furkan Korkmaz assumed some of the ballhandling duties. Even that tactic was short-lived as Korkmaz exited the game in the first half with a left knee injury.
But it didn’t matter, thanks to a heavy dose of Embiid sprinkled with solid play from Maxey, Harris, and Milton.
Embiid led all scorers with 42 points along with 10 rebounds, six assists, two blocks, and two steals. Maxey had 26 points on 10-for-18 shooting, including making 3 of 5 3-pointers, along with nine assists.
This comes after Maxey shot 19 for 64, including 26% on 3-pointers, in the first three games without Harden.
Harris finished with 21 points while Milton added 11 on 5-for-8 shooting.
Trae Young paced the Hawks with 27 points and 11 assists. Dejounte Murray added 23 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists, while Clint Capela had 14 points and a game-high 15 rebounds.
A near-blown lead
The Sixers had a commanding 27-point cushion in the third quarter. However, the Hawks pulled within 92-82 with 1 minute, 31 seconds left in third quarter, thanks to a 19-3 run. Embiid responded with a three-point play 16 seconds later to stop the rally. Then Georges Niang was fouled while making a 3-pointer with 29.7 seconds left in the quarter. He made the foul shot to give the Sixers a 15-point cushion.
But the Hawks didn’t go away. Young’s layup pulled closed the gap to nine points with 5:54 to play. After a Harris basket, Capela scored to make it a 109-100 game with 5:19 remaining.
Then A.J. Griffin’s 3-pointer pulled the Hawks within six points at the 2:28 mark. But the Sixers responded with a pair of foul shots from Embiid and a 3-pointer by Thybulle to build a 118-107 lead.
In need of ball handlers
Sixers coach Doc Rivers isn’t comfortable with Melton as the team’s secondary ballhandler in the starting lineup.
“Honestly, not very yet,” Rivers said. " … I like De’Anthony as your third guy, not your second guy as far as ballhandling duties. But you know, you got what you got.”
Before Saturday, Melton started three four straight games at shooting guard because of Harden’s injury. And he’ll start numerous more once he returns as Harden is expected to be sidelined a month.
Right now, Maxey is the primary ballhandler. Milton will join Melton as a ball handler when Maxey is off the floor. But Rivers would like to have one more guard.
“Listen, there’s certain nights you play [the Hawks] and you have to have a defensive guy on the floor sometimes, too,” he said. “But, you know, they tend to separate their guards a lot, so you may be able to get away with one guy.
“But when Tyrese is off the floor, you want at least two ball handlers and Joel if you can. If you don’t do it that way, you want three ballhandlers on the floor. So all three guys can take it up and start your offense.”
Rivers doesn’t like Korkmaz as a point guard, but he likes him handling the ball. Milton and Korkmaz play well together. So their continuity could help the Sixers moving forward.
But right now, the Sixers have a huge challenge.
They loaded up on wings this offseason, thinking that Harden and Maxey would assume the ball handling duties and Melton would be the third option. Of the three, Maxey was the only one who played Saturday.
“Losing one of those guys really shows our weakness,” Rivers said of Maxey and Harden. “So we have to play around it.”
Harden was on the bench Saturday after spending time in Houston to attend to a family matter, according to Rivers. The All-Star is no longer wearing a walking boot on his right foot.
Up Next
The Sixers will entertain the Utah Jazz 7:30 p.m. Sunday. The Jazz (10-4) are coming off Saturday’s 121-112 road loss to the Washington Wizards.
