Ahead of the NBA trade deadline, 11-time All-Star James Harden made a decision that was best for his career. Having previously stated that he hoped to finish his Hall of Fame career with the LA Clippers, who play close to where Harden grew up in the Los Angeles area, Harden reversed course on this. Recognizing that there was likely going to be a gap between him and the Clippers in contract extension negotiations, and also seeing the trajectory the team was on, Harden felt it was best to find his way to a new situation. That is how the Clippers and Cleveland Cavaliers ultimately landed on a Harden for Darius Garland swap.
The move made sense for both sides. The Clippers got a young point guard for their future, while Cleveland got a superstar player for their win-now pursuit of an NBA title. For the Eastern Conference, it meant Harden was back. Having previously played for the Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers, Harden has delivered signature postseason performances in the Eastern Conference before. Making his playoff debut with the Cavaliers in Saturday’s Game 1 win against the Toronto Raptors, Harden turned in another strong all-around showing.
Toronto did not get this type of production from its stars, as neither Brandon Ingram nor Scottie Barnes were able to get much going offensively, particularly Ingram. Some of this could be attributed to Immanuel Quickley being out with a hamstring injury, as he often sets things up for Toronto’s best scorers, but nonetheless it was a disappointing performance for the Raptors in the series opener.
Speaking with reporters postgame, Harden said that neither Toronto nor Cleveland played well in this game. The three-time scoring champion specifically mentioned both Ingram and Barnes, highlighting their offensive ability and crediting what Cleveland was able to do against them defensively.
“It’s a team game defensively,” Harden said. “BI is so good offensively. He gets to his spots, he can rise up, and it’s tough. You can’t block him once he gets to his spot. So I think Dean did a great job and did his work before he can get to his spot, so obviously it’s a tough task.Scottie’s a tough task as well. But that’s why you’ve got five guys on the floor helping each other out. So it’s not going to be easy at all, but tonight was a good start for us.”
Over the course of a seven-game series, both teams will make adjustments based on how things play out. For the Raptors, it’s clear they need more from their better players. While some of the struggles in the series opener are due to good game plan execution by Cleveland, there are certainly ways that Darko Rajaković can better set his team up for success.