James Harden struggled once again as the Cleveland Cavaliers fell down 2-0 to the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference Semifinals with a 107-97 loss at Little Caesars Arena on Thursday. Harden has more turnovers than made field goals in this series, and Udonis Haslem went off on him on Prime postgame.
“There is 5 guys that have been in the NBA that have went to the playoffs 17 consecutive plus times,” Haslem said, via Heat Central. “[John] Stockton, [Karl] Malone, Jason Kidd, Tony Parker, James Harden. Why the hell are you turning the ball over so much? You have been in the playoffs, you know what it’s like to be in the playoffs, you understand playoff intensity. Why the hell are you turning the ball over?
“And it’s so self-inflicted wounds,” Haslem continued. “One-handed passes, things that I would take my son out the game, if I was coaching him. For throwing passes like that. Why are you having these kind of passes and these plays in the second round of the playoffs? I don’t understand that.”
Harden had four turnovers in Game 2, with the last one coming in the final minute, when the Cavaliers trailed 103-97. The 36-year-old’s tally for the 2026 playoffs is now 47 in nine games, which comes to a whopping 5.2 turnovers per game. This is not a recipe for success.
What makes this even worse is that Harden had acknowledged in his press conference after Game 1 on Tuesday that his inability to take care of the ball had cost the Cavaliers.
“You look at my turnovers, and a lot of them were just on me and nothing they did,” Harden said, via the Cavaliers. “… Which led to, I don’t even know how many transition points they have, but it was way too many. And I mean, if I had to put my print on one thing on the game, that’s the game right there.”
Harden had seven turnovers in Game 1 and six made field goals. The 11-time All-Star at least got to 22 points that night, which was far more than he managed here.
Harden finished with just 10 points (3-13 FG), six rebounds, three assists, and one steal. He shot 23.1% from the field, and according to ESPN Insights, this was the 20th time in his playoff career that he had shot under 25.0%. By getting to 20, Harden broke a tie with Hall of Famer Bob Cousy for most such playoff games in the shot clock era (since 1954-55). This is not a record you want to hold.
Kendrick Perkins Called James Harden A Liability On Both Ends
If you thought Haslem was being harsh, wait till you see what Harden’s former Oklahoma City Thunder teammate, Kendrick Perkins, has to say. Perkins ripped him to shreds by calling him a liability during an appearance on SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt.
“The obvious is that he should not be playing the minutes that he’s playing right now,” Perkins said. “James Harden is being a liability on both ends of the floor. He’s not there. He’s costing his team’s possessions, and on top of that, he’s not defending anyone. They tried to put him on Cade Cunningham, and Cade just went to work on him.
“And again, we’re not taking anything from James Harden of the past, but we’re talking about the James Harden of now,” Perkins continued. “And Kenny Atkinson had some interesting comments after the game in his postgame interview, Scott. He said, ‘It’s on me. I’ll take the blame for only getting James Harden two shots in the fourth quarter.’
“And I’m sitting up here listening,” Perkins added. “And I said, ‘What? What? That’s what you come to the podium talking about? No. How about a lineup adjustment and taking him out the game?'”
Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson is unlikely to remove Harden from the lineup or reduce his minutes. If the guard continues to struggle, though, then you wonder how long they keep him around.
Game 3 will tip off at Rocket Arena on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET.
