James Harden faced a lot of criticism following the Cavaliers’ Game 1 loss to the Knicks, where they completed a 22-point comeback by exploiting the 36-year-old’s weakness on defense and his overall fatigue. The Knicks eventually won 115-104 in overtime.
Draymond Green, the Warriors’ veteran, recorded an episode of his podcast, ‘The Draymond Green Show,’ and extended his support to James Harden. He not only said that Harden was not at fault, but he also agreed with Harden’s comments that it was the team’s responsibility to be better at defense.
“Jalen Brunson living on an island with James Harden guarding him. That’s just not something you can let happen. Like James Harden has been at it for 17 years. Teams have tried this over and over again. You have to expect that this is what they’re ultimately going to go to.”
“And so you have to have some other coverage, a show with James in coverage, right? Put James on a guy that you’re not worried about making plays in the pocket. Do some other things right there.”
“But the switch also, this isn’t just a coaching issue. Like, yeah, if you’re Kenny Atkinson, you want to adjust sooner, but this isn’t just on Kenny Atkinson. When you’re trying to compete at a championship level, you must have guys that want to take on that challenge and say, ‘I’m not switching at this point in the game”
“And by the way, the problem I’m having with most of these guys are you set the screen, they switch. Let them set the first screen, don’t switch. Let them set the second screen, don’t switch, fought through it. They don’t just want to give the ball to the other guy. Jalen Brunson wants to make the play. So, don’t switch the first one. Don’t switch the second one.”
“Now, as opposed to Jalen Brunson getting the switch with 19 seconds on the shot clock, 17 seconds on the shot clock, now he gets to switch with six or seven seconds on the shot clock. Now you’ve got to go. Now our defense can react, and we just end up in a rotation.”
“But it’s not just dicing us up, tearing us apart. And that’s what happened last night. They just switched every time. But you must have guys who want to take on that challenge. And who would take on that challenge? Dennis Schroder would take on that challenge.”
“Dennis Schroeder was taking on that challenge. When Dennis Schroder left the game, things got a little bleak. But you got guys in there that don’t really want that challenge, they don’t wanna fight through the screen and say “this is my matchup, I wanna stop this guy.” They don’t do it.”
“I watch this every night in these big-time playoff games of guys who, man, I’m a defender. I want to defend.” And you switch every f—–g time. It’s an opportunity every time. And I don’t understand it. I don’t understand it. Guys simply don’t know how to win. Don’t want to win. Don’t want to do what it takes.”
“But it’s ridiculous watching these guys just switch off. It is not James Harden’s job to guard Jalen Brunson 1-on-1; it’s not what he’s paid to do, some of those other guys who are just switching off, it is your f—–g job.”
“So, everybody wants to come out, ‘oh man, James Harden got crushed.’ How many guys has James Harden picked on and put in that situation? Seen it for years, right?”
“He wasn’t going to do that with Steph Curry, though, cuz we weren’t going to allow it. We weren’t going to just switch and watch Steph just iso with James Harden. Why would you do that? Makes no sense. We weren’t going to allow it. Just wasn’t going to happen.”
“By the way, if I’m out there, I’m getting through there. If I’m not guarding that guy, I’m doing something on the backside to tell a guy, “Yo, go here. Do this. Go that.” We are not about to sit here and watch him iso Steph Curry.”
“They just watched him iso James Harden. We need Steph Curry to go score, man. I don’t need you wasting your legs down here. I tell Steph all the time, bro, just don’t give up a straight line drive. I’ll be there because I don’t want you fighting with that dude. Not because you can’t. Because why do I want you doing that? Makes no sense for you to do that.
“I don’t want you sitting here trying to guard James Harden for 12 dribbles. F–k that. Don’t give up a straight line drive. We are there to help. You can make the next rotation. Not f—ing just about to sit there and watch him line up one of your best offensive players. Have him try to guard so his legs go on the other end. Hell no.”
“So, I was baffled by this. I’m still baffled by it every night when I watch these guys accept switches and not really want to f—–g guard the guy. So, everybody is going to come out and say, ‘Oh man, James Harden got annihilated.’ They’re picking on him. They should f—–g pick on him. Why not?”
“You tire him out. Absolutely pick on him. So all of a sudden, them threes that will fall late, they fall short. Yeah, pick on him. It’s the Cavs job responsibility not to allow it,” Green said as he concluded his profanity-laced rant about the Cavaliers’ defense.
Jalen Brunson Hunting James Harden pic.twitter.com/rlyEGCbdlf
— Coach Gibson Pyper (@HalfCourtHoops) May 20, 2026
Following the Game 1 loss for the Cavaliers, Harden also said something similar to Green, urging his teammates to defend better.
“He made some tough ones, but obviously, we all know he’s a great one-on-one player,” said Harden when reflecting on the defensive performance against Brunson.
“I think anybody on an island is going to be difficult, so we’ve got to do a better job of making sure he sees bodies. On the other hand, they do a good job of supporting him and helping him when he’s on an island. He made some tough ones.”
“We’ve got to do a better job as a team just because it’s not a one-man job,” Harden said. “So, you know, got to be better in that aspect. I think he made a couple of them, which, you know, really got them going.”
Jalen Brunson torched the Cavaliers in the fourth quarter to lead the charge, as he ended up with 38 points, five rebounds, six assists, and three steals while going 15-29 from the field (51.7 FG%) and 1-6 from the three-point line (16.7 3P%).
With Harden as his primary defender in the last eight minutes of regulation time, Brunson scored 13 of his 15 fourth-quarter points in isolation. He was 8-12 from the field in the entire game against Harden as his primary defender.
Meanwhile, Harden ended up with just 15 points, four rebounds, and three assists while going 5-16 from the floor (31.3 FG%) and 1-8 from the three-point line (12.5 3P%) with six turnovers. Clearly, a night to forget for Harden on both ends of the floor.
The Cavaliers are now set for Game 2 tomorrow night at Madison Square Garden. It will be interesting to see what adjustments Harden and the Cavaliers make to avoid the same mistake.
