The Cleveland Cavaliers pulled off one of the biggest transactions in the league this season. Not many people saw James Harden being up for grabs, let alone being traded to Cleveland. Notably, even fewer thought the Cavs would finally pull the plug on Darius Garland.
Unsurprisingly, this trade was met with mixed reviews. Garland was a homegrown All-Star and a decade younger than Harden, but his history of injuries and shortcomings in big moments also made a case to move on from him.
Fast forward to today, and the limited sample size just vindicated Koby Altman and his vision. It's been just two playoff games, but this team looks much more dangerous with James Harden and Donovan Mitchell than it ever did with Garland in the backcourt.
James Harden's arrival has elevated the Cleveland Cavaliers
According to StatMuse, Mitchell averaged 28.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.7 steals, and 3.1 three-pointers per game on 37.1 minutes and 45.6/34.5/77.8 shooting splits and went 9-11 in 20 playoff games with Darius Garland by his side. Garland, by the way, averaged just 17.0 points and 5.2 assists per game on 43.8 percent from the floor.
So far, through two games, the 2-0 Cleveland Cavaliers have Mitchell sitting on averages of 31.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.5 steals, and 4.0 triples per game on 55.8/47.1/75.0 shooting splits, all while Harden is right behind him with 25.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 7.0 assists, 3.5 steals, and 3.5 three-pointers per game on 53 percent from the floor and 46 percent from three-point territory.
It might be too early to jump to conclusions, but the past week was a perfect example of why teams make these types of moves. Garland admitted that he was never fully healthy and couldn't do much to help his team make the playoffs through the Play-In Tournament, all while Harden was getting Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen involved and throwing them lobs to jump to a 2-0 series lead.
The regular season also gave the team and the fans a glimpse of what life with James Harden instead of Darius Garland could look like, and there's simply no objective reason not to bring him back with a multi-year deal.
Of course, this is not to dunk on Garland while he's down or to say that he will never be a good player for the Clippers. That said, availability is the best ability, and even when Garland was healthy in the playoffs, he rarely lived up to the expectations. So far, Harden has been the opposite.
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