James Harden admits to being ‘James Harden’

Thirty-two points on 14 shots in a much-needed Cleveland Cavaliers win over the New York Knicks was a good reminder of who James Harden is. And in case there was still any confusion, the former MVP made sure to clear everything up afterward.

“My name is James Harden. I used to score a lot of points,” Harden told reporters Wednesday evening.

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That clarification was needed based on how Harden’s first 11 outings had gone. He entered Wednesday’s game in New York averaging an uncharacteristic 15.3 points per game, shooting a dreadful 36.4% from the field. Harden has been a step slow and unable to create space off the dribble.

There’s a downstream effect to Harden not being able to score. The passing lanes dry up when defenders don’t have to help cut off his drives. This has left him as an inefficient scorer and inept playmaker at the start of the season.

Yet, he doesn’t have to be that player.

Wednesday, Harden showed that he still has the talent to be a dynamic scoring guard. He got the outside shot working in the second quarter, and then expanded his game from there. Defenders had to overplay him on the perimeter, which allowed him to attack inside. He used that to his advantage to score nine points in the fourth quarter, which included two finishes inside the paint.

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In short, he was the Harden we’ve seen wreck defenses for over a decade and a half, not the one that we saw in the first 11 games this season.

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The Cavs would be a championship contender if they could guarantee performances like this from Harden in the playoffs.

Being able to score and playmake at this level would mean teams couldn’t load up to stop Donovan Mitchell, and it would create easy scoring opportunities for Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley inside. But you can’t ensure this version of Harden on a nightly basis, or even for big games he gets up for. Age catches up to every player, especially a 37-year-old like Harden who has played…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/james-harden-admits-being-james-120000818.html

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Publish date : 2026-11-13 12:00:00

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