There was a weird discourse that developed somewhere along the way of James Harden's career about him being a selfish player who hogs the ball and crushes offensive momentum. That has never been true, and a large chunk of Cleveland Cavaliers fans are only catching on to that fact now.
Four games with Harden at the helm as the Cavs point guard have officially resulted in four wins after a convincing 112-84 beatdown of the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday night. Harden enjoyed another solid outing in wine and gold. The star guard posted 16 points, nine assists, five rebounds, and three steals, shooting 6-of-8 from the field and 3-of-5 from beyond the arc.
The win featured Harden leading the team in assists for the third time out of a possible four opportunities. The lowest number posted by the aging star in that category was seven against the Denver Nuggets.
Harden's playmaking has always stood out as one of his best traits to anyone who has watched him closely throughout his time as one of the standout superstars of his era. At 36 years old, that aspect of his game is still strong and should continue to boost the Cavaliers moving forward.
Cavaliers fans are seeing James Harden's passing genius up close
In defense of Cavs fans, there were a few seasons from the Houston Rockets days where Harden did lead the NBA in usage percentage. Perhaps that is where some of the misconceptions around his game come from.
However, the brand of basketball Harden was asked to play with the Rockets was always about maximizing offensive efficiency. The former MVP is an all-time engine on that end of the court. Having the ball in his hands typically leads to elite results.
Likewise, Harden is also one of the greatest isolation scorers the NBA has ever seen. If you're absorbing his game from a distance, a ton of the clips and highlights through which you get the Harden experience will typically fall under that category.
Somewhere along that career path it just got lost that Harden is someone who has also led the league twice in assists per game and averaged double-digit assists four times overall. It's not even simply about the stats here either.
Harden has always shown a willingness to mold his game to what his teams need. With the Nets, he sacrificed a ton of individual offense to compliment Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Playing with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey on the Philadelphia 76ers featured a similar story.
Harden has always been capable and willing of leaning on whatever part of his game best supports the team and roster around him. With the Cavaliers, that should be his playmaking. As such, Clevelanders should expect to see a ton of great passing for the rest of the year.