The Cleveland Cavaliers increased their chances of winning an NBA Championship even more after adding James Harden to their roster in exchange for Darius Garland. Garland was a great player, but Harden represented a higher level, one of the best offensive players in the league and an important boost alongside Donovan Mitchell. The Cavaliers believed the combination of Harden and Mitchell could elevate the team’s ceiling.
Alongside Donovan Mitchell, Harden remained hopeful about making a deep playoff push and winning his first NBA Championship in his 17-year NBA career. The new Cavaliers guard had several opportunities to win a title, but he had not returned to the NBA Finals since his first appearance with the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2012. Harden recently spoke with members of the Cleveland media during a Cavaliers practice, where he explained what it takes to win an NBA Championship.
“Uhh, Maybe Brooklyn?” Harden responded when asked about the last time his team was close to winning an NBA title. “It’s like I’ve been in this league 17 years and I haven’t won a championship. I guess it’s really, really hard. Like you have to be really good. You have to stay healthy and you have to have a little bit of luck. But health is the most important thing.”
The Cleveland Cavaliers currently sit in the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference with a 39-24 record. The Cavaliers are 3.5 games ahead of the Toronto Raptors for the fifth seed and just one game behind the New York Knicks for the third seed.
How the Harden Mitchell duo is performing
In the 127 minutes that James Harden and Donovan Mitchell shared the court, the Cavaliers outscored opponents by 11.9 points per 100 possessions. Harden and Mitchell played seven games together, and Cleveland posted a 6-1 record in those matchups.
Mitchell missed some time with a groin injury and Harden dealt with a fracture in his right thumb, so the Cavaliers still had work to do before being considered true championship contenders.
“You have to be good enough,” James Harden admitted. “We’re not good enough. We’re not even talking about a championship. So first step is we are good enough and we gotta stay healthy, which we’ve seen that throughout the course of years and I’ve dealt with it. Luck hasn’t been on my side, but we’ve seen the last year in the finals. It’s a part of the game. So if we can’t be that team to where we stay healthy.”
Harden numbers
James Harden played 44 games with the LA Clippers this NBA season before the trade, averaging 25.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, 8.1 assists and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 41.9 percent from the field and 34.7 percent from three. His scoring average was the highest it had been since his last full season with the Houston Rockets.
In his first nine games with the Cavaliers, Harden averaged 19.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 7.9 assists while shooting 46.9 percent from the field and 45.6 percent from three.