PHILADELPHIA − Bones Hyland sat on the Los Angeles Clippers bench Wednesday night, knowing that he wasn’t going to play, just like he hasn’t in 39 other games this season.
It’s easy to see why.
Hyland’s lack of playing time is because of the same player that 76ers fans booed every time he touched the ball Wednesday night. But Hyland, the Wilmington native and St. Georges star, wasn’t about to boo James Harden, even though Harden’s trade demand last summer eventually led the Sixers to deal him to the Clippers.
In the process, Harden called Sixers president Daryl Morey a “liar,” and someone he would never play for again. And after the Clippers’ 108-107 win over the Sixers, Harden said “hell no” if he’d try to patch up the relationship with Morey.
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Harden, however, admires Hyland, and has tried to help him through this situation. And it’s not just Harden. The Clippers also have Russell Westbrook as Harden’s backup. Westbrook just returned Monday after missing 12 games with a hand injury.
And there are also veteran All-Stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
“I talk to him every single day about just staying focused,” Harden said. “He’s behind four Hall of Famers. He’s very talented. It’s just the situation he’s in. In this league, opportunity is always going to present itself, whether it’s injury, or your name (is called) and Coach sees something, whatever the case may be.
“You just gotta be prepared and be ready to go. It’s just that simple.”
But Hyland says it hurts not playing. He understands the situation, so he works hard in practice. He learns as much as he can from Harden and Westbrook in particular, and he waits for his turn, which he knows might not come until next season.
“We got four Hall of Famers on our team, so you can learn stuff from them every single day,” Hyland said. “Pick their brain. When they’re on the floor, (study) their reads and stuff like that. Even though I’m not playing, I’m still learning. I’m young.
But not playing a lot even though you’re supposed to be playing, that’s been the toughest thing. Just dealing with that, honestly. Knowing how talented you are, and just having to not play for 4-5 months, knowing you can be out there helping the team and contributing. So it’s been tough, for sure.”
Hyland, who’s 23 years old, also has the perspective of someone much older. That’s because Hyland and his brother escaped a fire by jumping out of a second-story window just about six years ago to the day, back on March 25, 2018. Hyland tore his patellar tendon while jumping from the one that destroyed the family’s Wilmington home. Hyland’s grandmother and 11-month old cousin died in the blaze.
Hyland was told by the doctors that he wouldn’t play basketball again.
So yes, Hyland has dealt with worse. He’s in his third NBA season after he was drafted in the first round by the Denver Nuggets in 2021. The Nuggets traded Hyland to the Clippers midway through the 2022-23 season. The Nuggets went on to win the NBA championship while Hyland got a fresh start with the Clippers as the first guard off the bench.
It was supposed to be that way again. Then Harden forced his way off the Sixers.
That, in turn, forced Hyland to learn a new virtue: patience.
“That’s something that I’ve been learning,” Hyland said. “Especially this season. I have never gone through this before. It’s something new.”
Clippers coach Tyronn Lue can relate. He was once a young reserve on the Los Angeles Lakers at the turn of the century, famously getting stepped over by Sixers legend Allen Iverson after Iverson’s basket in overtime of Game 1 of the 2001 Finals.
That’s what Lue is trying to impart to Hyland.
“Just the constant communication of being a pro, doing things the right way,” Lue said about what he tells Hyland. “Just making sure he’s taking his time, understanding who’s in front of him, and what we’re doing. Bones is a great young talent. I know he wants to play… But when you’re on a veteran team, like we have, sometimes you gotta be more patient.”
Hyland has gotten his chances. Before Harden was traded, Hyland averaged 16.0 points in 24 minutes over the first four games of the season. Both Harden and Westbrook sat out against the Bulls on March 12. Hyland started, played 31 minutes and had 17 points, 11 assists and 4 steals.
Hyland said that it was a result of working hard in practice, studying video and learning from Harden and Westbrook.
“If you go back to watch the Chicago game, you will see a lot of reads that I was making,” he said. “That’s come from film and being in the gym and working and stuff. Even though I haven’t been playing, I’ve been working, and (the Clippers) can see that too.”
But now that Westbrook is back, and Harden is playing well, and the Clippers (45-27) are battling for home-court advantage in the Western Conference playoffs, Hyland is back on the bench.
So there was Hyland on the sideline, giving Harden a high-five after a timeout. There he was with his other teammates cheering as Leonard drove through the lane, hitting the layup and ensuing a free throw upon getting fouled, putting the Clippers up by a point with 15.7 seconds left.
And there he was, the first player out on the floor to celebrate after the Clippers survived the Sixers’ final attempt at the basket as time expired, as Kelly Oubre drove the lane and was stopped by George.
How is Hyland dealing?
“I don’t really got an answer, for real,” he said. “Just work hard, honestly. Every day, just making sure that I’m getting ready. You never know when someone is going to go down, and then you step right in. That’s something that I keep in the back of my mind, make sure I’m staying up to par, working. That’s all I can do, work and stay ready.”
Contact Martin Frank at [email protected]. Follow on X @Mfranknfl.
