THE HEAT IS ON

Harden isn’t approaching Miami series as a solo mission

CAMDEN, N.J. » How much aging star James Harden has left in the tank is a prime storyline for Game 1, as the Sixers commence asecond-round best-of-7 playoff series with the Miami Heat Monday at FTX Arena (7:30 p.m., TNT).

The Sixers didn’t bring injured center Joel Embiid to Florida as he’s recovering from a concussion and fractured orbital bone, the product of a collision with Toronto’s Pascal Siakem late in a series-clinching win over the Raptors last Thursday. Embiid could be back when the series returns to Philly later this week.

Sixers coach Doc Rivers has spent the past couple of days tweaking the offense to suit the talents of the 32-year-old Harden, who averaged 29.6 and 31.6 points just two and three postseasons ago.

It’s early but the Sixers have their fingers crossed that the modern version of Harden is more than enough to work with. He averaged 19.0 points, 10.2 assists and 5.0 rebounds to help the Sixers eliminate the Raptors in six games.

“At this point, I just do whatever it takes to win a game,”

Harden said after practice Sunday. “If Joe’s out, I’ve got to be more aggressive scoring the basketball, getting to the basket and making the right decisions.”

The Sixers are 6-8 this season without Embiid, one of those victories against the Heat in Miami.

The Heat have injury issues of their own as point guard Kyle Lowry won’t play. But Jimmy Butler will be there along with big man Bam Adebayo, and that’s reason enough to expect a rugged series.

“I’m going into the game thinking it’s a fight,” Sixers forward Georges Niang said. “That’s how I’m going to go in. If I’m going into a fight, I’d rather hit than be hit. I’m going in thinking it’s going to be a brawl because once you get closer and closer to the championship and the finals that’s really what it comes down to. I expect it to be a real physical series.”

Even without Embiid, Harden has some solid options to get the ball to in Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris. Maxey averaged 21.3 points against the Raptors, Harris 17.8 points. Not a bad situation at all although Embiid averaged 26.2 points and 11.3 boards.

“To me, it’s not just about being James Harden,” the man himself said. “We’ve got really good guards with Tyrese and Tobias, our entire group. I think everybody’s counting us out or doubting us with Joel out. We focus on what’s in-house and how can we do it better.”

Harden will be a little more hands-on with mentoring Maxie at the beginning of this series. The Sixers need a big game from the second-year vet, who can disappear for stretches almost as effortlessly as he explodes to carry the offense.

“He’s talented and he just wants to go out there and do the right thing all the time,” Harden said. “I feel like it’s my job to help him, especially when he’s a little confused or things aren’t going great. Tell him ‘it’s a long game, stay with it. Stay in attack mode.’ Even if you don’t feel like it’s happening, things will open-up. You can have slow starts.”

The Heat play much like the Raptors, as they capitalize on their length and athleticism to switch on defense to create turnovers. The Sixers’ game plan will incorporate many of the same nuances.

“We’re going to see a kind of similar defense,” Harden said. “Same mindset. Attack the paint, create and generate open shots, and just play free and have fun. The main focus is defensively if we can keep generating stops, consecutive stops in a row, it allows our transition offense to get out and be more successful.”

The Sixers beat the Heat in Miami last month without Embiid and Harden. And they got a quality win over Memphis without Embiid.

Though Harden played old for a portion of the Raptors’ series, his teammates have a ton of confidence in his ability to lead them.

“Having the offense tailored around James is, I don’t want to say just as good (as with Embiid), but it’s still great for us,” Niang said. “We still have a guy who can control the game, that can score at an elite level and really a guy that can get our guys the ball. I really think it’s going to come down to making shots and being available when James gets double-teamed. I feel more than comfortable having the ball in James’ hands.”

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS James Harden takes a gulp of water after practice Sunday. The Sixers are hopeful his veteran savvy and skills will help overcome the loss of MVP candidate Joel Embiid in the third two games of their best of seven playoff series against the Miami Heat that begins Monday.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE Sixers guard James Harden needs to bring his offensive game up a notch as a second-round series against the Miami Heat begins Monday night.