Playoff Prospects: Will James Harden Take Cleveland To The Next Level?

In this series, we’ll take a look at each NBA team that’s gunning for a deep playoff run. We’ll try to predict the players that will have the biggest impact, as well as the ceiling for each squad in the 2026 postseason.

Around this time last year, the Cleveland Cavaliers were locking up the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Pundits had them going as far as the Eastern Conference Finals or even the championship series.

Though the Cavs took care of business against the Miami Heat in the first round, they were outgunned by a feisty Indiana Pacers squad led by Tyrese Haliburton in the Eastern Conference semis. It didn’t help that Darius Garland was bothered by a toe injury, compromising the high-octane offense that the Cavaliers had banked on.

Cleveland exited the 2025 playoffs in the second round, and when the new season commenced, they couldn’t quite live up to their own standards from the previous year. As Garland’s injury persisted, rumors began to surface about an unhappy Cavs majority owner Dan Gilbert plotting to make major moves.

On the week of the trade deadline, the Cavs pulled the trigger: Garland (along with a future second-round pick) was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers for 11-time All-Star James Harden.

As is the case with past teams that Harden had been traded to, the Cavaliers experienced a honeymoon phase in which the former MVP took the offense to another level. Whether Harden can help take the Cavaliers further into the playoffs is another question altogether.

Though both Garland and Harden are extremely talented, there’s no denying that the Cavaliers are still Donovan Mitchell’s team.

Since coming over from the Utah Jazz in 2022, Mitchell has demonstrated his leadership on and off the court for the Cavs. It was in Cleveland that Spida finally earned All-NBA honors (Second Team in 2023, First Team in 2025); and he has also continued his streak of making the All-Star team while donning a Cavaliers uniform.

In their first two months together, Mitchell and Harden (who are both ball-dominant guards) have displayed good chemistry that has translated into regular season wins. The question is, will they continue to jell under the bright lights of the playoffs?

Here’s where Harden comes under a microscope: In his previous teams, he has infamously underperformed in playoff contests, including games where his squad’s postseason life was on the line. This year, will it be Mitchell or Harden holding the ball in the biggest crunchtime moments? Can Harden defer to Mitchell when it counts the most?

While the Cavaliers’ backcourt certainly commands the spotlight, their stalwarts in the shaded lane are worthy of attention as well.

Evan Mobley, in particular, can turn the tide in any series that Cleveland competes in. The reigning Defensive Player of the Year has the ability to dictate the tempo for the Cavaliers with his rim protection and rebounding prowess. By cleaning up the boards, Mobley unleashes his team’s potent fastbreak offense bannered by Mitchell and Harden.

How else can Mobley spell the difference? If he can get his three-point shots to fall, the Cavs become an even tougher cover. Over the past two seasons, the 6-foot-11 big man hovered at 37.0% from beyond the arc, a serviceable shooting clip that at least gets opposing centers to second-guess their coverage. This year, however, Mobley has converted on barely 30.0% of his outside shots. He’ll have to knock down even more in order to improve Cleveland’s floor spacing in the postseason.

The Cavaliers will probably finish at the no. 4 spot in the East, setting them up for a seven-game series against the Atlanta Hawks. Though Jalen Johnson and his crew are an athletic bunch, the Cavs should have enough firepower to overcome the threat of Atlanta and advance to the next round by winning Game 7.

The semis matchup that they’ll walk into, will be another fascinating scenario. The Detroit Pistons have been the number one team in the Eastern Conference for most of the season, but the health of Cade Cunningham (who has dealt with a collapsed lung) is now somewhat of a question mark. This Cavs-Pistons series could also go the distance, and in the end, it may very well be Cleveland left standing, thanks to the heroics of Mitchell.

The Cavaliers, in other words, have a shot at making it to the Eastern Conference Finals. However, they’ll hit another ceiling when they get there as the Boston Celtics now have both Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum in tow. With the Celtics looking like a bona fide championship contender, the Cavs will likely their playoff journey come to an end at the hands of Brown and Tatum.