Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden spent much of Tuesday’s Eastern Conference Finals Game 1 getting torched by Jalen Brunson, and his comments about the performance are not inspiring much confidence that things will change in Game 2.
Harden admitted that Brunson made some “tough ones” during the Knicks’ dramatic comeback win over Cleveland at Madison Square Garden in New York, N.Y. However, Harden seemed unwilling to take much of the blame for Brunson’s eruption, and said the Cavaliers had to do a better job on him as a team.
“He made some tough ones. He’s a great one-on-one player,” Harden said. “I think anybody on an island, it’s going to be difficult, so we’ve got to do a better job of making sure he sees bodies. They do a good job of supporting him and helping him when he’s on an island.
“We’ve got to do a better job as a team, just because it’s not a one-man job.”
"He made some tough ones"
— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) May 20, 2026
– James Harden on his defense against Jalen Brunson pic.twitter.com/VSQmLLArkP
Team defense, of course, is hugely important, and there is a degree of truth to Harden’s words. On the other hand, Brunson and the Knicks were actively hunting and targeting Harden on defense. They were doing so for a reason. Harden is the weak link on defense for Cleveland, and teamwork can only do so much to cover for that.
The Cavaliers will have to account for the reality that Harden is going to keep getting targeted on defense and adjust their gameplan accordingly. Otherwise, Brunson cooking him is likely to become a recurring theme in this series.
