‘Grateful’ James Harden leads Cavaliers into battle with Magic
Cleveland Cavaliers point guard James Harden reached another career milestone, becoming the ninth member of the 29,000-point club Monday against the Philadelphia 76ers.
His quest to reach 30,000 begins Wednesday, when the Cavaliers hit the road to play the Orlando Magic.
"The Beard" put together another efficient game in the 115-101 win over Philadelphia, totaling 21 points, five assists and five rebounds in 29 minutes. It was his sixth 20-point game since joining the Cavaliers in a trade with the Los Angeles Clippers.
Acquiring Harden, Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis in trades has revitalized Cleveland, which is now just a half-game behind the New York Knicks for third place in the Eastern Conference.
"The Cavs gave me an opportunity to go out and showcase my game, so I'm grateful," said Harden, who has 29,017 points in 17 seasons. "It's a testament to the hard work I've put in over the years."
Harden is averaging 19.3 points, 7.8 assists and 5.0 rebounds through 11 games with the Cavaliers. The team has won 18 of its last 24, continuing a hot stretch that started in late December and accelerated when Schroder and Ellis arrived from the Sacramento Kings.
All-Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell continues to score at a career-high pace of 28.4 points per game and is chipping in 5.8 assists, combining with Harden to form arguably the most dynamic backcourt in the league.
"I love the communication they've shown and I think James said it best," Cleveland coach Kenny Atkinson said. "They're both desperate to win. They got sidetracked a little bit with Donovan being out with the (groin) injury, but I'm pleased so far."
Atkinson and Harden each referred to the easy win over Philadelphia as a "bounce-back game," one day after they were soundly outplayed at home in a 109-98 loss to the Boston Celtics.
The Cavaliers have lost to the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder, East-leading Detroit Pistons and Boston in their last eight games, showing they are a step below those fellow title contenders.
Cleveland has completed its season series with those squads, giving it 17 games to work out its kinks before the start of the playoffs.
"They're elite teams and we obviously have got to get over that hump. It's very clear," Atkinson said. "We're not there yet and we know we need to improve."
The Cavaliers are 2-0 against the Magic this season with Mitchell averaging 40.5 points. Paolo Banchero leads Orlando at 32.0 points in the series, continuing a one-on-one rivalry that began in the 2024 postseason when Cleveland won a seven-game series.
Power forward Banchero has been on a roll since the All-Star break, pouring in 26.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 5.7 assists with four 30-point games. He scored 33 points Sunday as the Magic mauled the host Milwaukee Bucks 130-91.
The Magic have followed his lead, winning four straight and seven of their last 10 to move past the 76ers into a top-six playoff position.
"Offensively, we've been finding our flow," Banchero said. "I'm just going out there and being aggressive. When we're able to get stops and get off the glass and run, I think we find real good shots."
Orlando has put its surge together despite losing forward Franz Wagner (left high ankle sprain) and guard Anthony Black (abdominal muscle strain) indefinitely. Any hopes of their quick return was dashed Tuesday, when the team declined to set a timetable.