NBA
January 4, 2023

James Harden: Georges Niang is Philadelphia’s ‘Sharpshooter’

James Harden has become Georges Niang’s biggest cheerleader this season.

The Beard has continuously encouraged the former Iowa State Cyclone to shoot the leather off the ball whenever he plays. When the Sixers hosted the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday, Niang took that advice to heart and scored a bench-high 15 points on 5-9 shooting from deep after 26 minutes of action. Niang’s effort earned praise from Harden, who called Niang the 76ers’ “sharpshooter.”

“If he’s not shooting the ball, he shouldn’t be in the game,” Harden said per Sports Illustrated. “I said, ‘Shoot the ball.’ Tonight, he did a really good job of that. He’s our sharpshooter.”

Niang is in the middle of his second season with the 76ers after signing as a free agent in 2021. Last year, Niang shot 5.1 threes per game and hit them at a 40.3 percent rate off the bench. He’s reprised that role this season, and he’s been shooting 40.7 percent from beyond the arc on a career-high 5.7 attempts per game. He’s also scoring a career-best 9.4 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game.

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