Absent Doc Rivers Assesses James Harden’s Performance vs. Cavs

Following a dominant win on the road against the Brooklyn Nets to begin their preseason, the Philadelphia 76ers returned home on Wednesday night to host the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Unlike the first outing in Brooklyn, the Sixers were expected to have everybody healthy and playing on Wednesday after allowing Joel Embiid, PJ Tucker, James Harden, and Danuel House Jr. to sit on Monday night.

While those four prospects were cleared for action on Wednesday, it was Sixers head coach Doc Rivers who missed the game as he was described as "under the weather" by a team official.

One of Rivers' top assistants, Dave Joerger, took over for Rivers on Wednesday night. Joerger and the full-strength Sixers engaged in a tight battle with the Cavs throughout all four quarters of action, with Cleveland in the driver's seat.

However, the Sixers came out on top when the game concluded and secured a 113-112 victory. Two days later, Doc Rivers returned to practice with his team on Friday morning.

Following a long and spirited practice, Rivers addressed the media to discuss what he saw in Wednesday's game from a spectator's perspective and assessed James Harden's performance as it was the first time we saw the ten-time All-Star in game action since his busy offseason.

"From my couch, he looked fine," Rivers joked. "He looked good, got guys off the dribble. You know, I love that he's passing ahead, the advanced pass. I think that's why Tyrese is so effective because we got him in the open court. We can't do it enough. We literally can't do it enough. He's starting to see the game better from a point guard perspective."

While Doc Rivers appreciated Harden's facilitator-heavy approach last season down the stretch, the Sixers' head coach is demanding much more out of the star guard this season. On a segment with SportsCenter earlier this week, Rivers publicly stated he wants Harden to become something similar to a scoring Magic Johnson.

In 18 minutes of action on Wednesday night, Harden didn't light up the stat sheet. He took nine shots, with just three falling. By adding two successful free throws, Harden finished the night with nine points. His shot wasn't sharp, but his passing was on point as he racked up five assists while turning the ball over just once.

You'll have to take Harden's preseason performances with a grain of salt, being that he's a seasoned veteran that's already proven as a top-tier talent in the league. While he didn't come out firing, looking like a revamped version of himself on Wednesday as some might've expected, Harden looked just fine in the eyes of Rivers.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.