James Harden joins the Cleveland Cavaliers but the questions that have surrounded the franchise in recent years remain
In my wildest dreams, I never imagined I'd be writing a column about James Harden coming to Cleveland. Giannis Antetokounmpo? Maybe. Harden, no chance.
When the news first percolated on social media on Monday night, it felt like a silly internet rumor. Soon enough, though, SI's Chris Mannix revealed just how real it was.
Discussions became hotter and heavier in the 24 hours that followed, and well, here we are. With Harden a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and Darius Garland heading to Los Angeles to become the new sign of hope for the Clippers.
Harden's name certainly has star power. And acquiring him thrust the Cavs back to the top of all the major sportsbooks as the betting favorite to win the East. But the fit remains clunky. And the same problems that existed for Cleveland with Garland, remain with Harden, hence my skepticism.
The biggest question facing this Cavaliers franchise right now is whether or not they have what it takes to make a deep playoff run. Four straight years of early postseason exits, with Cleveland never advancing past the second round, have defined the "Core 4" era. That's also defined Harden, who has notoriously come up short in the playoffs himself.
Since leaving OKC in 2013, there have been 11 different instances in which Harden has been bounced in the first or second round of the postseason. He's made the conference finals two other times, during his Houston Rockets tenure, and lost both.
Donovan Mitchell knows the feeling. He's never advanced past the second round of the playoffs in his career. Neither have the Cavs since he arrived in town. The narrative that the Cavs can't win that time of year won't suddenly go away with Harden, regardless of what Vegas thinks.
This isn't some flawless fit on the court either. For as much as people questioned the Garland-Mitchell backcourt combo, a Harden-Mitchell combo comes with many of the same warts.
Harden remains a heliocentric guard who needs the ball in his hands. In some ways, it helps Mitchell that someone else can handle the ball. He's probably more likely to play off-ball than Harden is. But there's an awkwardness to it that has to be sorted out and they only have two-and-a-half months to do that.
Harden, like Garland, is also a liability on defense, where reels of his lowlights on that side of the floor live on YouTube for all of eternity. He'll be picked on by other teams, particularly in the pick-and-roll, where he's one of the worst defenders in the NBA.
The name is different but the problems are the same.
And yet, it's fair to see why President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman felt this move was necessary. While chronic toe injuries continued to keep Garland out if the lineup, Altman and company reached a point where they simply couldn't trust he'd be healthy when they needed him most.
Credit where it's due, Harden's availability cannot be questioned. He plays a ton of games and has only had one season where he averaged less than 35 minutes a game. That's at least one positive outcome for Cleveland.
Any others are purely financial-based, which truthfully, are probably the biggest motivations behind this deal.
Getting the final two years of Garland's contract off the books, as it's set to jump to over $42 million per year is a big relief. Harden is due a similar amount in 2026-2, but it comes in the form of a player option, and includes a window this summer where just over $13 million is guaranteed, meaning, Cleveland has a fairly cheap potential out if they want it.
As a second apron team, that cap flexibility matters.
This move may also be a precursor to others. It feels inevitable that Lonzo Ball gets moved before Thursday's trade deadline. Altman may just have another big move up his sleeve too.
If so, maybe the Harden trade becomes more tolerable. On its own, though, it just feels messy.
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