Celtics

Doc Rivers sent James Harden a gospel song with ‘good juju’ before series-tying performance

Harden said he received the text from Rivers when he was on his way to Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Arena for the game.

By Khari Thompson

May 8, 2023

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Email
• Email

James Harden laughed, wiped his forehead, and rubbed his temple when he was asked about the gospel song Doc Rivers sent him for inspiration before Game 4.

Did the song, titled “You Know My Name” by Tasha Cobbs-Leonard, help get Harden ready for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, where he scored 42 points and buried a clutch 3-pointer that tied the series at 2-2?

“I think so,” Harden said with a chuckle.

After opening the series with a spectacular 45-point performance in Game 1, Harden shot a combined 5-of-28 from the field in Games 2 and 3. The Sixers needed a strong bounce-back performance from him to extend the series.

So, Rivers turned to gospel music.

“For a day and a half, he had to get himself back,” Rivers said. “No one did that, but James. The film’s great and we talked and probably 15,000 other people probably talked to him, but James—I sent him a gospel song before the game and the title of it is ‘Do You Know My Name?’ and James Harden was James Harden (on Sunday afternoon).”

Harden said he received the text from Rivers when he was on his way to Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Arena for the game.

“I get a text from Doc and I’m like, ‘what is going on?’…it’s a gospel song,” Harden said smiling. “So I’m like, ‘alright, whatever,’ so I just told my homies, ‘let’s play the song!’ It’s a seven-minute song, but I let the whole song play. I’m like, ‘alright, there’s gotta be some good juju in this song or however he’s feeling, I wanna feel like that’ and I guess it worked.”

Harden said he let the whole song play because it was the first time Rivers sent him one, and he wanted to see how Rivers was feeling.

“And oh how you comfort me,” the lyrics to the 2017 song read. “And oh how you counsel me. Yet it still amazes me that I am your friend. So now I pour out my heart to you. Here in your presence, I am made new. So now I pour out my heart to you. Here in your presence, I am made new. You know my name. You know my name.”

After tying the series, the Sixers are hoping for a repeat performance from Harden.

“You better play (the song) again when we play on Tuesday,” joked Sixers forward P.J Tucker.