Last offseason, James Harden signed a two-year, $81.5 million contract extension, which, thanks to a player option, could very well mean he will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Since being traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Harden has been transformative, helping the Cavs win 52 games and secure the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. But it’s unclear if he will turn out to be a ‘rental’ for Cleveland, considering the leverage his option presents.
“Harden has a $42 million player option for next season that he’s likely to decline, a league source said,” The Athletic’s Fred Katz wrote. “But a longer-term deal at a lesser number still would not be cheap. With today’s rules, with the way high payrolls chip away at resources and wallets, teams can’t stay so expensive while continuing to lose in the second round. Meanwhile, [Donovan] Mitchell, who can hit free agency in 2027, becomes eligible for an extension this summer.”
Harden, who will turn 37 in August, sacrificed many of his counting stats in moving from the Clippers to the Cavaliers. Before the trade, he averaged 25.4 points per game, which was Harden’s highest points average since the 2019-20 season, his last full year with the Houston Rockets. Post-trade, Harden has averaged 20.5 points with the Cavs.
Regardless of how many points he scores, though, the Cavaliers have found quite a bit of success with Harden on the floor. In the 26 games he played, Cleveland won 19, which makes for a 60-win pace across an entire season.
The Cavs begin their first-round playoff series tomorrow at home vs. the Toronto Raptors, whom Cleveland did not play after the Harden trade. Toronto won each of the three meetings this season, all of which happened in October or November, by at least 11 points.