The NBA playoffs continue to be James Harden’s mortal enemy.
Harden was atrocious in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Game 2 loss to the Detroit Pistons on Thursday. The Cavs star went 3/13 from the field for just 10 points as Cleveland fell to Detroit by a final score of 107-97.
The former MVP Harden also had more turnovers (four) than assists (three) on Thursday night. That included one particularly awful misdribble with under 40 seconds left in the fourth quarter to seal the Cavaliers’ fate.
James Harden with a costly turnover pic.twitter.com/XmFYw4gUYF
— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) May 8, 2026
Harden’s latest playoff dud led to a number of memes flooding social media. X users were more than happy to pile onto Harden over yet another disappearing act by him in the postseason.
James Harden showing up to the playoffs every year pic.twitter.com/Xcm74jKP24
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) May 8, 2026
James Harden with the game on the line pic.twitter.com/vNjbLWWuuU
— Underdog (@Underdog) May 8, 2026
James Harden as soon as the playoffs start pic.twitter.com/IhMQ8MYuJA
— Fliff (@fliff) May 8, 2026
James Harden game on the line pic.twitter.com/WrMixERdpX
— Pardon My Take (@PardonMyTake) May 8, 2026
The three-time NBA scoring champion Harden is one of the league’s all-time great regular season performers. But he has a well-earned reputation as a playoff choker and has not made it out of the second round since 2018 (despite getting to the playoffs in every single season since then).
Now Harden and the Cavaliers are down 0-2 in their second-round series against the Pistons. Though Cleveland traded for Harden at the February deadline in an effort to go all-in on winning this season, the 11-time All-Star is not really helping matters right now and has even been losing his cool over the course of the Detroit series.
