Philadelphia 76ers stars James Harden and Joel Embiid are under fire for their struggles in a Game 7 loss to the Boston Celtics.
As Hayes noted, the Sixers appeared to have control over the Eastern Conference semifinal after winning Game 5 to take a 3-2 lead. But they stumbled in losing Game 6 at home and then fell flat after halftime in Sunday’s Game 7, allowing the Celtics to go on a 28-3 run in the third quarter to take control of the game.
Jayson Tatum set an NBA playoff record with 51 points, the most ever for a Game 7, but Hayes wrote that it was the lack of heart from Embiid and Harden that had the bigger impact. He questioned whether the Sixers could return with the same team next year after the poor performances from the stars.
