James Harden Insists Cavs Were the Better Team After 4-0 Sweep by Knicks: The Most Tone-Deaf Take of the Playoffs
The Cavaliers got swept. James Harden looked into the cameras anyway and said the quiet part loud.
Asked after the 130-93 Game 4 blowout in Cleveland whether the Knicks were just the better team, Harden refused to give the answer everyone expected. “It was 4-0, but I don’t think we had a chance as far as our best shot,” Harden said. “They dominated us 4-0, but I don’t know if I can necessarily answer that question because I do feel like we’re the better team.”
That is the kind of postgame quote that gets clipped, screen-shotted and replayed for the next decade. Cleveland was outscored by 51 points across the series. They were never within 10 in the second half of any of the final two games. They watched the Knicks score 26 fastbreak points in the first half of Game 4, which is the most by any team in a playoff first half over the last 30 years.
Harden’s Numbers Tell the Real Story
Harden averaged 16.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists across the four games. He shot 38.9 percent from the field and 17.9 percent from three. In Game 4 he had 12 points on 2-of-8 shooting with five turnovers and only two made buckets. There was no version of the Cavaliers being “better” that the box score is willing to support.
This is the same Harden who was supposed to be the missing piece when Cleveland traded for him at the deadline. He was supposed to be the playoff closer the Cavaliers had been chasing for two years. Instead he turned in one of the worst conference finals series of his career and then claimed the result was somehow misleading.
The Cavaliers Now Have Two Decisions to Make
Cleveland already locked in Kenny Atkinson for next season. The harder question is what to do with Harden. His contract decision is looming, and the Cavaliers have to decide whether the version of Harden they got in the playoffs is the version they want to keep paying.
The roster around him is expensive. Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen all eat huge cap. If Cleveland is serious about its title window, Harden has to either be a difference-maker or be cleared off the books. The middle ground is how franchises waste prime years.
Why This Quote Hurts More Than the Loss
Sweeps happen. Bad shooting nights happen. What does not normally happen is the leading veteran on a swept team telling the world that the team that won four straight blowouts was somehow worse. That is the kind of statement that costs you the locker room over the summer.
Mitchell took the high road and gave the Knicks their flowers. Atkinson called the Knicks the better team. The front office accepted the loss. Harden, alone, decided to put his name on the alternate reality version.
Knicks fans are going to remember this for a long time. So will the Cavaliers, the next time Harden tries to lobby for a bigger role.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
