Harden-Less Sixers Couldn't Handle the Heat in South Beach

On Friday night, the Philadelphia 76ers turned an ugly first half into a comeback victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Shortly after collecting their 39th win of the year, the Sixers boarded a plane and went to South Beach for a matchup against the Miami Heat on Saturday night.

It was the third time the Sixers and the Heat met for a matchup this season. Back in December, the shorthanded Heat paid a visit to South Philly and stunned the 76ers. A month later, the Sixers got payback when they paid a visit to the Heat in Miami.

With the regular season series evened at one, the Sixers and the Heat met once again on Saturday night. And similar to that January 15 matchup, Philadelphia was coming off of the first game of a back-to-back.

The Saturday night showdown had a lot of juice, considering the new-look Sixers notched the second seed this week and were slated to face the top dogs of the Eastern Conference. However, the Sixers found out their new star acquisition James Harden, wouldn't get the green light to go.

Holding Back

James Harden has battled a hamstring injury since before coming to Philadelphia. As a member of the Brooklyn Nets, Harden missed three-straight games before the trade deadline. As he was set to miss a fourth-straight outing for Brooklyn, Harden was traded to the 76ers.

But the hamstring tightness didn't go away for Harden. The Sixers ruled Harden out for four games ahead of the NBA All-Star break as he underwent treatment for his hamstring. He also missed the 2022 NBA All-Star game.

Once the Sixers returned to the floor last Friday, Harden made his debut against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Heading into Saturday's game, Harden played in three-straight games for the Sixers. They were 3-0 and held a four-game win streak heading into Miami.

Unfortunately, Harden's treatment plan played a role in him missing the second night of the back-to-back. And once again, the Sixers were left to lean on Joel Embiid and the young guard Tyrese Maxey against the East's top seed.

Ice Cold in Miami

Right out of the gate, the Sixers looked like a team playing its second game in less than 24 hours. In the first quarter, they scored less than 15 points while shooting 21-percent from the field. 

While they picked up the slack in the second quarter, the Sixers were still outscored by six points. Heading into halftime, Philadelphia trailed by double digits as Jimmy Butler and the Heat led by as much as 20 points in the first half.

A little rest did wonders for the Sixers. Coming out for the second half, Joel Embiid played every minute and went 2-3 from the field and 8-8 from the free-throw line for 12 points. He helped the Sixers outscore the Heat 28-19. 

The Sixers might've brought the game back within one possession, but the Heat proved they aren't the Knicks or the Cavaliers. A second-half comeback wasn't in store for the Harden-less Sixers on Saturday night. 

As Philadelphia scored just 14 points in the final 12 minutes, the Heat put up 26 points to put the nail in the coffin. Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro each notched 21 points, while Gabe Vincent and Caleb Martin had stellar scoring outings for themselves as well to help the Heat put up 99 points on the Sixers.

Meanwhile, Philadelphia's 34-percent shooting from the field and 17-percent from beyond the arc played a massive part in the loss. Embiid, who led the Sixers in scoring with 22 points, shot uncharacteristically poor from the field as he went 4-15.

While Tyrese Maxey continued his persistent shooting as he knocked down 50-percent of his shots from the field and went 3-6 from deep, the second-year standout cooled down a bit as he scored 17 points in 35 minutes. 

After falling short to Miami 99-82, the Sixers picked up their 24th loss of the year. It marks the first loss since before the All-Star break. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.