James Harden’s Cleveland Debut Highlights the NBA’s Era of Star Movement
CLEVELAND - The beard has landed in Cleveland, and the welcome was unmistakable.
James Harden made his debut in front of Cavaliers fans Wednesday night, and the city embraced him in full force. The team’s mascot sported a faux beard, fans waved cardboard cutouts of Harden’s signature facial hair, and the arena buzzed with the kind of energy reserved for a superstar’s arrival. It was a scene that’s become oddly familiar for Harden, who now finds himself on his sixth NBA team - a rare feat for a player with his résumé.
We’re talking about a former MVP, an 11-time All-Star, and one of the top 10 scorers in league history. A guy who, not long ago, would’ve been the cornerstone of a franchise for a decade or more.
Now? He’s the face of the league’s new normal - high-profile stars changing jerseys like it’s part of the offseason routine.
And Harden’s not alone. Russell Westbrook has played for seven teams.
Kevin Durant and Jimmy Butler have each suited up for five. Kyrie Irving’s on his fourth, and Anthony Davis will hit his fourth stop next season when he debuts for the Wizards.
Chris Paul? He’s been on seven teams - not counting a brief stint with Toronto, who told him to stay home after acquiring his contract at the deadline.
It’s a far cry from the days of Magic and Bird, who spent their entire careers with one team. Even Michael Jordan’s late-career run with the Wizards cracked that mold. Kobe Bryant became the exception, not the rule.
And now, someone like Donovan Mitchell - who’s played for only two teams in nine seasons - looks more like an outlier than a standard bearer of loyalty. Mitchell, who’s eligible for an extension this summer, isn’t criticizing the trend. He’s just living in the reality of today’s NBA.
“It’s a different age,” Mitchell said. “You adapt.
I don’t know where it started. You adapt and figure things out.
It’s the same thing on the court. It’s a faster-paced league.
You adapt to what’s there. I’m not mad at it.”
That adaptability is the name of the game now. Harden, Durant, Butler, Irving, Davis, Westbrook and Paul - seven of the league’s biggest names - have combined for 72 All-Star appearances while playing for 38 different teams.
That’s not a fluke. That’s a trend.
And Harden, never one to mince words, put it plainly.
“The whole quote-unquote loyalty thing, I think it’s overrated,” he said. “This is a business at the end of the day, and it’s a lot of money involved and a lot of decisions that have to be made.”
That sentiment has driven much of Harden’s career. He’s never been afraid to push for a new situation when he felt the time was right.
His move from the Clippers to the Cavaliers might have been the smoothest yet - less of a breakup, more of a mutual parting. Los Angeles didn’t want to guarantee his contract for next season.
Cleveland, meanwhile, saw a chance to add a veteran scorer to a contending roster and was willing to pay for it.
“I don’t lose focus of trying to compete for a championship,” Harden said. “And then financially, making sure that my family is taken care of.
I’m very smart, and I’ve sacrificed a lot financially, which I don’t get credit for … I don’t get talked about. But I’m fulfilled, and I’m happy with it.”
He’s not wrong. Harden once declined a $47 million player option with the Sixers, taking a $15 million pay cut to help build a better roster. That gamble didn’t pay off with a title - Philly fell to Boston in the conference semis - and Harden was out the door a year later.
“If a guy isn’t happy and he wants to be traded somewhere else, then it’s a problem,” Harden said. “It’s just so many different dynamics that go into it.
Not even just the NBA, but … people that have normal jobs have those same problems. It’s just not magnified.
You know what I mean?”
It’s a fair point. In a league where the spotlight never dims, player movement is often viewed through a different lens. But the motivations - professional growth, financial security, personal happiness - are universal.
Even LeBron James, who’s been remarkably stable by modern standards, once acknowledged the shift. When asked how many teams are too many for a superstar, he pointed to Jordan’s time in Washington as a turning point.
If MJ could wear a different jersey, anyone could. James has stuck with three teams over 23 seasons, but with free agency looming again this summer, even that number could change.
So what’s driving all this movement? It’s not just players chasing better fits or bigger markets.
Teams are more willing than ever to move stars - even All-Stars - to get out from under heavy contracts. Just a few weeks ago, the Hawks traded away Trae Young, a four-time All-Star, primarily to clear cap space.
The league’s new financial rules - including the “apron” thresholds that penalize high-spending teams - are accelerating the trend. But let’s not pretend this is all about the new CBA.
Before the aprons, we saw the Clippers trade Blake Griffin a year after a massive extension. Chris Paul was dealt out of Houston, Bradley Beal out of Washington, and Kevin Durant requested a trade from Brooklyn less than a year after signing an extension.
The reality is, players are signing long-term deals with the understanding that those deals don’t lock them into a city - they lock in the money. The rest? That can be figured out later.
That’s the current landscape, and teams are adjusting just like the players are. The Suns, for example, spent their way into the apron and had to dismantle parts of their roster to regain flexibility. It's a chess match now - one where both sides are making moves to protect their interests.
“I feel like players should ultimately do what’s best for them,” Harden said. “And the front office does what’s best for them and their owner and their organization. It’s two sides of the story.”
It always is. And in today’s NBA, those stories are being written faster than ever - one jersey change at a time.