So there was more to James Harden missing the past two Los Angeles Clippers' games than just personal reasons. On Monday night, ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reported that the 36-year-old guard and LA were working to find a trade before Thursday's deadline. Shortly before that, Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated reported that the Clippers and Cavaliers were discussing a Harden-Darius Garland swap.
Now it's official: Charania reported on Tuesday that LA is receiving Garland and a second-round pick, sending Harden to Cleveland.
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
The season started rough for the Clippers with their 6-21 record, which sparked trade speculation before the unofficial start of trade season. Since then, though, LA has climbed closer to .500, sitting ninth in the West at 23-26 (and has won 16 of its last 20 games). By no means are they where they thought they'd be, but still, it seemed less likely that a Harden trade would happen.
Clippers trade James Harden in move fans didn't see coming
Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line reported (subscription required) that a source said, "It's all about a contract extension." Harden signed a two-year extension worth up to $82 million. Los Angeles didn't want to sign him to a deal longer than that, prioritizing cap space in 2027.
Harden is making $39.2 million this year and has a $42.3 million player option for the 2026-27 season, but there's a catch. If he stayed with the Clippers and picked up that option, they would have had until July 11 to waive him, which would significantly cut his salary to $13.3 million.
Clearly, Harden no longer wanted to be in LA. If it were up to the Clippers, he'd still be suiting up for the team, but they shouldn't be surprised his time with the organization ended the way it did, not after how his previous stops did. He didn't publicly call Lawrence Frank a liar as he did with Daryl Morey in 2023 (never forget), and didn't spend the past two months forcing his way out of LA, as he did in Houston.
His departure from the Clippers was less dramatic than his other breakups, but the point still stands that you can't count on him to stay put, at least through the duration of his contract. LA knew there was a chance he could leave in the offseason, but he didn't want to stick around for the full season.
You can't exactly blame Harden too much for wanting to get out in front of this summer's decision about his non-guaranteed salary for next season. The NBA is a business, after all, and he's looking out for himself. By this point, the Clippers should've known that Harden is who he is.
Los Angeles thought it was the lucky winners of its Harden trade in 2023, sending a mix of players and assets to Philadelphia for him, hoping he'd help the Clippers win their first-ever title. They've since learned their lesson. Now it's time for the Cavaliers to learn the same.