Cavaliers Notes: Harden, Atkinson, Minix, Tyson

Trading for James Harden last season worked out in the short term. Harden’s alarming start to this season creates a $97MM problem for the Cavaliers, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com opines.

Harden is averaging a career-low 15.3 points on 36.4 percent shooting. His assist totals (5.7) are also significantly down from his 8.0 average last season and he’s committing 3.0 turnovers per game. Fedor also notes that in 359 Harden minutes, the Cavs have a 108.6 offensive rating. In 174 minutes without him, that offensive rating rises to 123.5.

Harden was signed to a three-year, $97MM contract this offseason. Due to cap constraints, the Cavaliers don’t have many options beyond hoping Harden can regain his…