After an impressive 2022-23 regular season campaign, the Philadelphia 76ers‘ dynamic duo of Joel Embiid and James Harden accomplished a remarkable feat together.
Embiid and Harden became only the fifth pair of teammates to lead the NBA in points-per-game and assists-per-game, and the first since George Gervin and Johnny Moore of the San Antonio Spurs in 1981-82.
Embiid outlasted Dallas Mavericks’ Luka Doncic for the scoring title, averaging 33.1 points per game this season. Meanwhile, Harden finished ahead of Atlanta Hawks’ Trae Young for the assists lead, posting 10.7 helpers a game.
Heading into the postseason, Embiid and Harden helped the Sixers solidify one of the top spots in the Eastern Conference.
The Sixers’ big man had an outstanding season, posting a career-high in points while averaging 10.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.7 blocks a game over 66 contests.
On the other side, Harden dove into the facilitator role, averaging his highest assist rate since the 2020-21 season, adding 21 points and 6.1 rebounds over 58 games.
Philadelphia finished the year 54-28, good enough for the third seed in the East. The Sixers finished only three games back of the Boston Celtics (57-25) for second place and four games behind the Milwaukee Bucks (58-24), who posted the NBA’s best record.
With the regular season out of the way, the Sixers look ahead to their first-round matchup against the six-seeded Brooklyn Nets.
The 76ers swept the Nets in the season series, 4-0, knocking them off for the fourth time on Sunday, 134-105.
