Cavs Odds Shift as James Harden Arrives in Cleveland Seeking Elusive Championship

The jersey wall at James Harden's home just got more crowded. The 11-time All-Star and former NBA Most Valuable Player was traded Tuesday to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a blockbuster swap that shook up the league's trade deadline.

The Cavaliers sent injured guard Darius Garland and a future second-round pick to the Los Angeles Clippers for Harden, who has nearly every personal honor a basketball player can achieve, but still seeks an NBA title.

(Photo by Juan Ocampo/NBAE via Getty Images)

Odds for Cleveland to win the NBA Finals essentially improved by half: FanDuel moved the Cavs NBA Odds from +2300 to +1200 after the trade was announced.

Oddsmakers only have the Knicks, Celtics, and Pistons as better odds to win the Eastern Conference. The Cavs are listed only behind the Knicks in odds to win the NBA Finals among Eastern Conference teams, according to FanDuel.

The deal was not completely unexpected, as oddsmakers and NBA experts had Cleveland at the top of the list for Harden's next home.

Garland brings injury and fat contract to Clippers

The Cavs are instantly older, but healthier. The 36-year old Harden is averaging 25.4 PPG on 17 shots per game. His contract is a lesser burden than the one the Clippers have taken on with Garland. Next season, the Cavaliers would be only responsible for a portion of Harden's $33 million contract, while the 26-year old Garland is guaranteed $87 million in 2026-27 and 2027-28.

BREAKING: The Los Angeles Clippers are trading James Harden to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Darius Garland and a second-round pick, sources tell ESPN. Prolific swap of the star point guards. pic.twitter.com/IHhhhabJnX

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 4, 2026

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Cavs and Harden going for it in 2026 NBA Playoffs

The stunning move to add Harden to a team that won 64 games and was the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference last season appears to be a "push all your chips in" move by Cleveland general manager Mike Gansey.

Cleveland is currently the fifth seed in the East. The conference appears as wide open as it has in years, with last year's Finals representative the Pacers plummeting to last place.

The man they call "The Beard" has been named All-NBA eight times, won three scoring titles, and been named the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year. In 2017-18 he was the league MVP. But, his performance in the postseason has been disappointing. As a young player, coming off the bench for the Thunder, Harden played in his only NBA Finals, in 2012.

In 173 career playoff games, Harden has a .504 Effective Field Goal Percentage and 22.4 PPG average, as opposed to .524 and 25.5 in the regular season.

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James Harden seeking first championship

While he has never failed to make the playoffs despite playing for five teams in the past, Harden has been on the losing side of the Western Conference Finals three times. His team's are 15-16 in NBA playoff series. The last two seasons, his Clippers were bounced from the NBA Playoffs in the first round.

Harden was named to the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team in 2021, in a nod to his remarkable ability to create his own shot and score from almost anywhere on the floor. His patented step-back move, while technically illegal, is an effective way to separate from defenders.

But during his 17-year NBA career, Harden's lackluster defensive effort and playoff failures has placed him in a lower tier among the NBA's stars. He has been overshadowed by contemporaries Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, and LeBron James, all of whom have multiple NBA titles.