The Cleveland Cavaliers stirred the pot in the Eastern Conference. Trading for James Harden is always big news, even his 36-year-old version. Koby Altman saw a shot, and he took it, and the Cavs are now officially in the 'contending' list in the East.
While some fans were hesitant about this move, mostly because of their emotional ties to Darius Garland, it's hard to argue that their ceiling and floor are higher with the former scoring champion in town.
Nevertheless, like with every other move, this transaction will come with some adjustments. Namely, someone else isn't going to shoot as often as he did before Harden's arrival. All things considered, that guy may be Jaylon Tyson.
Jaylon Tyson's breakout year is now in jeopardy because of James Harden
Tyson was just playing the best basketball of his career before the Harden trade. The former first-round pick barely played as a rookie, but he had emerged as one of Kenny Atkinson's go-to guys over the past couple of weeks.
With Garland on the shelf with yet another injury, the 23-year-old shooting guard took his season averages to 14.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.1 3-pointers per game on 51-47-76 shooting splits. He averages 10.3 field goal attempts per game this season, and he has taken at least 10 shots in four consecutive games.
That might not be sustainable with Harden now in town. The former Los Angeles Clippers star averages 16.2 field goal attempts per game in his career, and he took 17.5 shots a night for them this season. That's more than the 14.2 attempts Garland took per game.
More than that, Harden is a much more ball-dominant player than Garland. It's not just that he's going to take a lot of shots, but most of the offensive actions are going to start with him taking the ball up the court. That will inevitably take a toll on Tyson's much-improved playmaking.
Of course, that's not to say that Tyson won't be a crucial contributor to this team. He's one of their best perimeter defenders, and his ability to do a little bit of everything should still get him on the floor early and often.
Then again, it's unfortunate to see that his rise to the top might take a downturn now that the team has added a future first-ballot Hall of Famer by his side. Everybody will have to make sacrifices, as the end goal is much more important than any individual agenda.