{"id":619935,"date":"2026-02-23T13:54:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T13:54:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/619935\/"},"modified":"2026-02-23T13:54:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T13:54:16","slug":"10-passes-that-prove-james-harden-is-a-legendary-creator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/619935\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Passes that prove James Harden is a legendary creator"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019ve watched the Cleveland Cavaliers<\/a> recently, you\u2019ve probably seen a jaw-dropping pass or two from James Harden. Most fans knew of Harden\u2019s playmaking \u2014 but actually seeing it in action, with those dimes being thrown to the players on your favorite team, is an entirely different experience than watching it happen for other franchises.<\/p>\n

Harden\u2019s dishing out nearly nine assists per game since joining the Cavs. While it\u2019s a small sample size of just six games, he\u2019s yet to finish with fewer than seven assists as a Cavalier. That shouldn\u2019t come as a surprise. He\u2019s a legendary passer who\u2019s now running point guard for a Cleveland squad that set the league ablaze last season.<\/p>\n

The Cavs had the third-highest offensive rating<\/a> in league history last season. And even though their personnel have changed quite a bit since then, they still have enough firepower to make life feel like a playground for someone like Harden.<\/p>\n

Whether it\u2019s throwing lobs to Donovan Mitchell, spraying out to shooters like Sam Merrill, or dissecting his opponents in the pick-and-roll with Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley \u2014 Harden\u2019s arguably never had more options to pass to.<\/p>\n

So, without further ado, here are 10 passes that show why Harden is having so much success on his new team.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s start with the biggest difference Harden brings to Cleveland. He\u2019s a BIG playmaker who can use his 6\u20195\u201d 220-pound frame to navigate the floor and unlock options they haven\u2019t had before.<\/p>\n

Can you imagine Mitchell or Darius Garland playing with their back to the basket in the high-post like this? Probably not.<\/p>\n

You might envision Evan Mobley in this spot, as he has operated this action before, but there\u2019s a huge difference between being an above-average playmaker for your position (like Mobley) and being one of the greatest playmakers in league history. Advantage: Harden.<\/p>\n

So what exactly makes the above play special?<\/p>\n

Harden sets up in the high post. This starting position changes the dynamic of Allen\/Merrill\u2019s action. Being here allows Harden to deliver the ball to the roller or to the perimeter more easily than if he were standing in the corner or on the wing (where would Merrill even pop out if Harden is on the perimeter?).<\/p>\n

The spacing just doesn\u2019t work the same if Harden isn\u2019t able to secure a deeper position.<\/p>\n

Now watch the screen set by Allen. Washington isn\u2019t willing to switch or play at the level of the screen because they recognize Allen\u2019s threat to roll or catch with a mismatch. That means Merrill\u2019s defender is on an island with no hope of contesting his shot.<\/p>\n

The pass itself isn\u2019t anything special. But Harden\u2019s size permits the entire play to develop. Look below for another example of this.<\/p>\n

The Cavs set up in horns with Harden and Merrill on the elbows. Again, Harden\u2019s ability to comfortably operate inside the perimeter sets him apart from Mitchell and Garland.<\/p>\n

Jaylon Tyson cuts through the middle after entering the ball to Harden. From there, Allen sets a flare screen for Merrill \u2014 and when the Wizards (again) choose to prioritize covering Allen\u2019s roll, Merrill wisely uses his man\u2019s momentum against him and cuts backdoor for a layup.<\/p>\n

But check the bounce pass from Harden. Specifically, where and when he throws the ball.<\/p>\n

Harden has a knack for leading his teammates into open space. This pass is zipping towards the basket before Merrill even realizes he\u2019s going to be open. So not only is Harden able to initiate plays from more advantageous angles \u2014 but he can read a defense to filth and deliver the ball with precision to generate easy buckets.<\/p>\n

Alright, let\u2019s get to something flashy.<\/p>\n

Harden\u2019s one of the best pick-and-roll operators the game has ever seen. This behind-the-back pocket pass is one of the reasons why.<\/p>\n

This begins with a subtle move to lead his defender into the screen. Then, when Harden senses that Kyshawn George is trailing behind the roll, he realizes the only way to deliver the ball through this window is to zip it behind his back before the pocket closes.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s really not much else to say about this. Anyone with eyes can tell you how ridiculous this is.<\/p>\n

Harden\u2019s size isn\u2019t just an advantage when playing with his back to the basket. He can also use it to absorb more contact and play at a deliberate pace when driving to the hoop.<\/p>\n

In this play, Harden is being hounded by Tim Hardaway Jr., but he never has to speed himself up to avoid losing control. He takes the contact, burrows his way into the paint, and then jumps to find the open man when Denver\u2019s defense collapses.<\/p>\n

Again, compare this to Mitchell or Garland. Undersized gaurds ineherently have to play with more speed in these scenarios. They don\u2019t have enough size to play through this much ball pressure. But because Harden is able to take his time, it allows this entire play to materialize.<\/p>\n

A quick dash to the hoop wouldn\u2019t leave enough time for this to develop. Harden\u2019s pace allows Mitchell to cut to the opposite corner. That causes Sam Merrill to dive to the corner, taking Christian Braun out of Harden\u2019s space. Then, when Bruce Brown stays to clog the lane \u2014 Mitchell makes it to the other corner \u2014 and Jamal Murray has to dig down to cover the skip pass. All of this culminates in Harden walking into the lane and spraying it out to Tyson, who is now wide open.<\/p>\n

But none of that happens if Harden isn\u2019t able to work through contact and control the tempo. A smaller player would have attacked the rim at breakneck speed and had nowhere to go because the rest of the play hadn\u2019t formed.<\/p>\n

Here we see another example of Harden\u2019s deliberate pace.<\/p>\n

Watch the consecutive hang-dribbles that Harden uses after curling around Allen\u2019s screen. This momentary hesitation forces the Kings\u2019 big man to commit to his drive. And that gives Allen the time he needs to claim space inside the paint.<\/p>\n

And because Harden isn\u2019t going from zero-to-100, he\u2019s able to gently drop this bounce pass to where only Allen can catch the ball. Perfect process and execution.<\/p>\n

Harden\u2019s bounce pass might be the most underrated aspect of his game. He makes this pass look easier than it is.<\/p>\n

The extra beat he takes to look at the corner and open Noah Clowney just enough to squeeze the ball through that window is the difference between an Allen dunk and a turnover.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve seen the bounce pass. Now let\u2019s look at a different delivery.<\/p>\n

This is an easy read. Harden comes off the screen and immediately draws two to the ball. But watch how he releases this pass. Harden jumps and floats this over-the-top pass with a downward trajectory to drop the ball perfectly into Mobley\u2019s hands.<\/p>\n

Once more, Harden\u2019s height gives him access to a pass that Mitchell and Garland don\u2019t have. Both could have made this read \u2014 but only Harden could serve this dish as cleanly as he did.<\/p>\n

This is just a brilliant play.<\/p>\n

Harden recognizes that Mobley has drawn a mismatch and is being fronted in the post. So while all eyes are on Tyson\u2019s screen \u2014 Harden sails a pass over the defense for an easy dunk.<\/p>\n

Making this pass from the logo, without wasting any time dribbling, is why Mobley is able to punish his mismatch before Brooklyn recovers.<\/p>\n

In this clip, we get to see our first drive-and-kick from Harden.<\/p>\n

It begins with a nasty crossover to get around Michael Porter Jr, a skill that we haven\u2019t focused enough on. Harden\u2019s as slippery as they come, and his ability to break his defender in isolation is what makes him such a threat, to begin with.<\/p>\n

After dispatching Porter, the Nets are forced to send a second defender to stop Harden\u2019s drive. Now Harden can either dish to Allen in the dunker\u2019s spot \u2014 or \u2014 more effectively, jump hook a pass to the 47.5% three-point shooter in the corner. Harden chooses the more difficult pass and is rewarded with an assist.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t need to tell you that this pass was nasty. I just figured we\u2019d end on a high note.<\/p>\n

Draw attention to the touch required to throw a lob this softly after breaking out in transition. Harden floats this pass gently to the rim, and all Mitchell has to do is jump and guide it home.<\/p>\n

Seriously, I can\u2019t comprehend how the ball hangs in the air for so long when taking into account how fast Harden is running. It\u2019s the type of pass that only an all-time great can make.<\/p>\n

If you want to watch all of these plays together, check out the tweet below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you\u2019ve watched the Cleveland Cavaliers recently, you\u2019ve probably seen a jaw-dropping pass or two from James Harden.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":619936,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3772],"tags":[7,306,1236,2268,305,193,3846,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-619935","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cleveland-cavaliers","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-cavaliers","10":"tag-cavs-analysis","11":"tag-cavs-videos","12":"tag-cleveland","13":"tag-cleveland-cavaliers","14":"tag-clevelandcavaliers","15":"tag-nba"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116120286948982085","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/619935","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=619935"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/619935\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/619936"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=619935"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=619935"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=619935"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}