CLEVELAND (AP) — James Harden has amassed many accomplishments during his career, which will likely include a place in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
However, Harden still has a glaring omission on his resume — a championship ring.
Harden sees his midseason trade to the Cleveland Cavaliers as his best opportunity yet for a postseason run culminating in an NBA title.
“It’s the truth. That’s why I’m here,” Harden said about the narrative of doing everything but winning a championship.
The Cavaliers open the NBA playoffs on Saturday when they host the Toronto Raptors. Harden has 90 playoff wins, second among players who have not won a championship. Karl Malone is atop the list with 98, but Harden could surpass him if Cleveland reaches the Eastern Conference finals.
Harden has played in 173 postseason games, third among players who haven’t won a championship. Malone is at 193, and John Stockton is next with 182.
The closest Harden has come to a championship was when Oklahoma City reached the NBA Finals in 2012, losing to the Miami Heat in five games. He reached the Western Conference finals with the Houston Rockets in 2015 and ’18, only to be knocked out by the Golden State Warriors.
“Run up against a dynasty, injuries. It’s a part of the game, though. … I don’t dwell on it. I don’t think back. It’s a part of it. It’s life,” Harden said. ‘I’m sure we all could look at ourselves and think about certain things that happened over the course of our life that just didn’t go our way and feel bad about it, feel sad about it. I don’t think like that. I just keep pushing.”
Harden’s last two trips to the postseason were with the Los Angeles Clippers and ended with first-round exits.
The Feb. 4 trade to Cleveland paired Harden with Donovan Mitchell, who also has experienced his share of postseason heartbreak. Mitchell is looking to reach a conference final for the first time in his nine-year career.
Harden is averaging 20.5 points, 7.7 assists, and 4.8 rebounds in his 26 games with the Cavaliers, who are 19-7 when “The Beard” is in the lineup. He is fourth in the league in assists (8.0), and his 23.6 points were 17th in the regular season. It was also his highest scoring average since 2020-21.
Coach Kenny Atkinson described Harden as a teacher in describing his impact on the team in a short time.
“He’s very bold, extroverted in talking with those guys, and it’s a huge help. He knows the things I don’t even see all the time,” Atkinson said.
“He’s like ‘Hey, they’re going to send Don left, can we flip the screen at this angle?’ and ‘Can we move the ball over to this side of the court so we’ve got more space to take away their gaps?’ I think he translates that message to the coaches and players,” Atkinson said.
The biggest question for Cleveland going into the playoffs is if its core four of Harden, Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen have had enough time together?
With just seven games and 92 minutes together, the quartet has delivered impressive results — outscoring opponents by 26.7 points per 100 possessions — but it has been a short stretch.
“We know the talent is there, but the problem is, when you don’t have a lot of chemistry going into high-stress situations like the playoffs, and against a team like Toronto who, I mean, let’s face it, they’ve got some guys that get after you — Scottie Barnes, Brandon Ingram — they understand the gravity of it all and they play hard, they play together,” NBC Sports analyst Reggie Miller said.
Harden isn’t concerned about the lack of minutes with his teammates, noting that Mitchell, Mobley, and Allen have played together for four seasons.
“It probably took me a game or two just to figure out where they like the ball and what to do, what not to do, and so I’m pretty familiar,” Harden said. “In the postseason for the most part, they’re going to guard you one way until game three, maybe game four, and make an adjustment. We’ll figure out what works, figure out how they guard us, and then talk about how we can adjust and counter them.
“So I’m not really worried about the (lack of) minutes. I’m more focused on us and our operations and our force against their defense.”
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