118 games.
That is how many games that James Harden has played for his last three teams, on average, before pushing his way to a new team. He hasn't left via free agency, but rather did what he needed to do to get traded to a new destination.
Just three games into his time with the Cleveland Cavaliers, to whom he was traded at this year's trade deadline in exchange for longtime Cavs point guard Darius Garland, Harden has done two things. He has impressed fans -- and he has made it clear he will leave whenever he decides the time is right.
It's easy to see how comfortable he looks already in a Cavaliers uniform, and to look at the team's 3-0 record, and to conclude that Harden will fit in spectacularly. Perhaps he will. But the story with Harden since leaving the Houston Rockets is the same: if he cannot both get paid the max and compete for a championship, he's gone.
He made it just 80 games in Brooklyn. 79 games in Philadelphia. He lasted a bit longer on the Los Angeles Clippers, but with a potential pay cut looming and the team fighting just to make the Play-In Tournament, Harden said sayonara and pushed the franchise to trade him to Cleveland last week.
James Harden is already preparing his Cleveland exit
Things seem great right now, but history says things won't last. If the Cavaliers prove they are not a true upper-level title contender, and/or when they tell Harden they aren't willing to pay him close to the max, things will turn on a dime, and Harden will request a trade in his own way to another team.
If you have a hard time believing that, just listen to his own words:
"The whole quote unquote loyalty thing, I think it's overrated."#Cavs James Harden on why it's become the norm for guys to play on multiple teams throughout their career: pic.twitter.com/fykczB5DZQ
— Leah Doherty (@LeahDohertyTV) February 12, 2026
"Loyalty is overrated." Things could go swimmingly for Harden in Cleveland. The Cavaliers could go on a run, finish as the No. 2 seed, win the Eastern Conference and take the Thunder or Nuggets to seven games in the NBA Finals. The Cavs could give Harden a lucrative new contract this summer. But at some point, when Harden's criteria are no longer being met, he's out. And he's not looking back.
What are his criteria? He told us: "trying to compete for a championship...and financially, making sure my family is taken care of." James Edward Harden Jr. wants to be on a winning team and to be paid like a superstar. That's the expectation of Cleveland. Right now, things are fine and dandy. But a playoff disappointment could change it all. Failing to meet his contract demands could pop the balloon. Landmines are littering the path ahead.
It almost doesn't matter what they do right now. They aren't banking any goodwill. They are planting seeds of loyalty. Harden will do his thing while he's in Cleveland, and then he'll peace out when he feels that it's time.
It all comes down to Harden's conclusion: "Players should ultimately do what is best for them." Fans of the Cavaliers should prepare themselves now. The honeymoon is fun, but it won't last forever. And neither will Harden's time in Cleveland.