For Cleveland Cavaliers fans wondering about James Harden's fit next to Donovan Mitchell, a recollection of Harden's sints with the Houston Rockets and Brooklyn Nets provides clarity.
As ESPN's Kevin Pelton pointed out on Tuesday, Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson has reason to study both the Nets and Rockets versions of Harden to arrive at a foolproof blueprint for James in Cleveland.
James Harden's Nets, Rockets tenures provide template for Cavs
The immediate concern about a Harden-Mitchell fit is that both players are ball-dominant.
However, Harden has thrived in these situations before. In 2018, a Rockets backcourt of Harden and Chris Paul brought Houston to within one game of the NBA Finals.
In Brooklyn, Harden had no problem playing the role of pass-first playmaker alongside a pair of alpha scorers in Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant.
Pelton pointed out that when Harden was in Houston, former Rockets head coach Mike D'Antoni strategically staggered James's minutes with Paul's, such that at least one of the dynamic guards was on the floor at all times when the game was close.
Interestingly, Rockets Harden spent almost as much time on the court without Paul (15 minutes or so per game, per Pelton) as he did with CP3 (approximately 20 minutes per game).
Pelton believes that Atkinson can implement a similar staggered minutes strategy with Harden and Mitchell. And in the minutes that the two superstars are on the floor together, Pelton believes Harden should morph into the Nets version of himself.
In other words, with Harden and Mitchell sharing the court, Harden should operate as the point guard and primary playmaker, with Spida playing off the ball. This shouldn't be much of an adjustment for Mitchell, who spent plenty of possessions off the ball during the Darius Garland era.
This is an ideal blueprint for Harden's role in Cleveland. It guards sufficiently against any locker room or on-court friction emerging between Harden and his new teammates, an important development given how Garland's tenure ended up.
Harden's already shown a willingness to be selfless in Cleveland. He has every reason to operate as a pass-first playmaker who makes everyone around him better, including the newly emerging Jaylon Tyson.
The Cavs should make Harden better, too, at least from a usage standpoint. At 36 years old, Harden shouldn't be shouldering a scoring load like he was doing in Los Angeles whenever Kawhi Leonard was out (which was often).
Harden's in a spot where he can pick his spots, and that's the best thing for his career right now, in addition to having joined a contender.