Getty Kevin Durant and LeBron James exchange words during the 2017 NBA Finals
All-Star guard James Harden was traded from the Brooklyn Nets to the Sixers in the final hours of this year’s NBA trade deadline. In exchange, the Nets received Sixers All-Star forward Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, and Andre Drummond. With both teams being among the favorites to win the title, there was already more than enough hype surrounding the matchup. With Harden facing the team that he requested a trade from less than a month later, as well as Ben Simmons on the Nets’ bench, the buzz surrounding the game was on another level.
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LeBron James Reacts to Kevin Durant, Embiid Altercation
The Nets and Sixers split their last two regular-season matchups so both teams were motivated to come out of Thursday’s matchup as the victor. And with all of the storylines surrounding the matchup, things did not take long to get chippy. In the first half, Durant was called for a blocking foul on Sixers star Joel Embiid which caused him to pop up off the floor and get right in Embiid’s face in a heated exchange. Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James appeared to be a big fan of the spiciness between the two All-Stars.
Kevin Durant and Joel Embiid exchange words. 🍿🗣
“I love that the refs let [Kevin Durant] and [Joel Embiid] talk that talk to each other and didn’t TECH them up! That’s DOPE!! Understanding the assignment,” James said of the heated exchange via his Twitter account.
I love that the refs let KD and JE talk that talk to each other and didn’t TECH them up! That’s DOPE!! Understanding the assignment
Although this matchup was perhaps the most anticipated of the season, it wasn’t competitive at all. From the opening tip, the Nets looked more prepared for this game than the 76ers as they routed them on their home floor in a 129-100 victory. Nets head coach Steve Nash was extremely proud of his team’s effort.
“Guys rose to the occasion, we got a second win in a row, and let’s see if we can keep building,” Nash said per NetsDaily. “I think it’s great for our confidence. We’ve had such a rough stretch here with injuries and we’re trying to put this thing together and build some cohesion and understanding.”
James Harden Makes History in Blowout Loss
In his first game against his former team, Harden made history as he passed NBA Hall of Famer Reggie Miller for number three all-time on the NBA list of three-pointers made.He also passed Dwyane Wade for 35th on the NBA all-time scoring list. Miller was in attendance as he was on the TNT broadcast of the game.
.@sixers ’ G James Harden passes @DwyaneWade for 35th all-time in scoring & is 9 away from passing Adrian Dantley for 34th.
However, Harden’s history-making performance was spoiled on a night he shot just 3/17 from the field with four turnovers. The honeymoon phase is over as this is his first loss in a Sixers uniform and undoubtedly his worse performance so far as a Sixer. He takes full accountability for his performance and knows that he has to be better.
“There’s no excuses. I gotta be better individually,” Harden said after the loss per Sixers Wire. “Some turnovers were just careless. Individually, I gotta be better and as a team, I’ll watch film to see where can we be better and we’ll just continue to improve. This is only our sixth game together as a unit. I’m still trying to figure things out.”
Their blowout win over the Sixers was one of the Nets’ most impressive wins of the year. They will try to build upon that in their next game against the New York Knicks.
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LeBron James Weighs in on Kevin Durant, Embiid Altercation in Nets Blowout