The Philadelphia 76ers star James Harden displayed his heroics against Jayson Tatum’s Boston Celtics to take his side past the finish line in overtime on Sunday. Apart from winning the crucial game in the semifinal series, he also won fans’ hearts, including the Los Angeles Lakers legend Magic Johnson. After dropping an emphatic 42 points in Game 4, Harden impressed the NBA world with his heartwarming gesture to a special fan on the court. 

The 10x All-Star has been a FaceTime buddy with, Michigan State student, John Hao, over the last three months. Hao survived the Michigan State shooting on February 13, but unfortunately, he was left paralyzed due to the injuries he had sustained. The Sixers star had earlier spoken to Hao on call when the latter was recovering from the injuries and kept his promise by inviting the 20-year-old to the recent Sixers game. 

James Harden impressed Magic Johnson with his special moment

After dropping the game-winning 3-pointer in OT, James Harden immediately met John Hao and his father on the court. Hao and his dad sported the Sixers jerseys with Harden’s No.1 on it. The Beard leaned toward Hao and tapped his shoulders and seconds later he removed his game-winning shoes and gave the signed pair to the brave survivor.

In response to the gesture, Magic Johnson took to his Twitter and expressed his appreciation for the Sixers’ star. The tweet read, “James Harden’s big heart was on display tonight! He invited MSU shooting survivor John Hao to the game today and gifted John his game winning shoes.”

On the contrary, Harden faced severe backlash after his underwhelming performances in the last two face-offs. Moreover, fans debated the star’s recent visit to Las Vegas ahead of the semifinal series as the reason behind his poor performances. However, he provided a fitting reply to the critics with his clutch performance. 

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Harden forces the series wide open

After the two back-to-back losses, fans expected the Philadelphia side to crash out of the playoff race. However, Harden ignited his playoff gas and fired 42 points with eight rebounds and nine assists to secure a thrilling 116-115 game in overtime. On the other end, the combined effort of Jayson Tatum, Marcus Smart, and Jaylen Brown went in vain. Moreover, the series is leveled at 2-2 and the upcoming 3 games would decide the fate of the Eastern Conference finalists. 

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What do you make of the Philadelphia 76ers star James Harden’s gesture toward John Hao after Game 4? Let us know in the comments below.