The Cleveland Cavaliers flamed out in the Eastern Conference finals. They needed more. Donovan Mitchell needed to do more. So did James Harden, who is as inconsistent in the postseason as anyone. A fate De’Aaron Fox now knows well. So, moving forward, Mitchell desperately needs Harden to learn from what just happened to Fox.
With the NBA Finals on the line in Game 5, Fox put up a brutal showing. He shot 3-of-15 from the field and 1-of-8 from deep range. It was tough. And the ball was in his hands instead of Dylan Harper’s far too often. If the Cavaliers want to win a championship with this core, Harden has to learn from Fox’s struggles.
He’s very familiar with them himself, but maybe watching another guy deal with it can help.
James Harden needs to learn from De'Aaron Fox's struggles
Historically speaking, Mitchell is a big-time playoff shot-maker. He struggled this year, but he was also supposedly dealing with an injury at times. So, it felt like Harden had the ball in his hands a lot.
But even so, Mitchell probably should have gotten a few more touches, especially at the end of the game. Instead, it was Harden who had the ball for the Cavs.
And in a lot of the games, Harden fell back into his old ways. The Harden that most people associate with playoff basketball. Bad efficiency and a lot of turnovers.
In the NBA Finals, with the San Antonio Spurs’ season on the line, that’s what happened to Fox. Harper played well, but Fox had the ball. And Fox wasn’t his usual self.
He shot the ball poorly, made silly decisions (especially that missed layup in Game 4), and had higher turnover numbers than he usually does. It was a very, very bad time for him to struggle (even though he was dealing with an injury).
Harden needs to learn from that. Learn from Fox’s mistakes. Learn from watching instead of doing. See what happened to Fox and the Spurs in the Finals, take that in, and apply it to his game.
Give the ball up to Mitchell more. Be more careful with it. Take smart shots. Make smart decisions. Learn from the Spurs in order to help Mitchell and the Cavaliers next season.
Because if Harden repeats what he – and now, Fox – usually does in the postseason, then Cleveland will probably flame out again next year.
And Mitchell and the Cavaliers have bigger dreams than that.
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