The Cleveland Cavaliers have James Harden accountable for his or her fourth quarter collapse towards the New York Knicks in Recreation 1 of the Japanese Convention Finals.
With lower than eight minutes remaining in regulation, the Cavaliers have been up 22 factors.
However then, Knicks head coach Mike Brown remembered his time as an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors. After the sport, Brown admitted that he focused Harden deliberately.
“After I was in Golden State and we performed Houston, we counted James Harden’s dribbles. We instructed our guys he is dribbling near 1000 occasions a sport,” Brown defined. “Maintain choosing him up full court docket and making him dribble. On the finish of the sport, it could put on him down.”
Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson instructed reporters postgame that Harden has been one of many group’s finest defenders this postseason and that the group intends on sticking with him.
Gulp.
It’s onerous accountable a site visitors cone for being a site visitors cone. As a substitute, blame the man that put the site visitors cone in the course of the highway and anticipated it to be something aside from a site visitors cone.
At 36, Harden merely couldn’t sustain with Knicks famous person Jalen Brunson. New York persistently pressured Harden into uncomfortable switches through the ultimate seven minutes of regulation and time beyond regulation, the place the Cavaliers solely scored three factors.
Recreation 1 was additionally the sixth sport of this postseason the place Harden completed with extra turnovers (six) than subject targets made (5). He solely had three assists, was 5-of-18 from the sphere and made simply one in every of his eight three-point makes an attempt.
As soon as once more, Cleveland’s resolution to amass Harden on the deadline has come into sight. Sooner or later, when any person spends 17 years telling you who they’re, you must in all probability take heed to them. Harden has by no means been the kind of participant to rise to the event within the playoffs.
When officiating tightens their whistle, Harden has a tougher time foulbaiting, which is the primary ingredient of his sport at this stage. When he’s passing the ball and unlocking Cleveland’s bigs, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, he’s best. Nevertheless, Harden’s turnover downside and affinity for isolation basketball was on full show down the stretch, as Cavaliers famous person Donovan Mitchell shot the basketball simply as soon as through the group’s whole collapse.
Atkinson has to method this collection in a different way. He can’t blindly belief Harden, or the Knicks will simply deal with enterprise towards the Cavaliers. This can be a a lot completely different collection than the Detroit Pistons or Toronto Raptors.
Harden was a whole legal responsibility on each side of the court docket and mysteriously remained within the sport as Atkinson refused to name a timeout throughout New York’s 18-1 run.
It was a disservice to all the group to maintain him within the sport.
