Cavs officially re-sign James Harden to multiyear contract

James Harden is officially back with the Cavaliers. Finally.

The Cavs announced Tuesday that they have re-signed Harden to a multi-year contract, completing a deal that had been agreed upon nearly three weeks ago.

Harden agreed to return on Aug. 20 on a reported three-year deal worth approximately $97 million. Making it official took considerably longer.

As we’ve covered at Hoops Wire, the Cavs had some salary-cap maneuvering to do after acquiring Peyton Watson from the Nuggets in a sign-and-trade, a move that hard-capped them at the first tax apron.

The Cavs subsequently waived and stretched Cam Whitmore and signed Khalifa Diop to a minimum contract as they worked to create enough room for Harden. Whatever remained to be sorted out has apparently been sorted out.

Harden, 37, averaged 20.5 points, 7.7 assists and 4.8 rebounds in 26 games with Cleveland after arriving from the Clippers at the February trade deadline. The Cavs went 19-7 with Harden in the lineup and advanced to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2018. He averaged 19.2 points, 5.5 assists and 5.1 rebounds in 18 playoff games.

Now comes the part the Cavs actually care about. Harden is entering his 18th NBA season and still has never won a championship. Donovan Mitchell hasn’t won one, either.

The Cavs didn’t bring Harden back merely to have another good regular season. They brought him back to help finish the job. And after nearly three weeks of waiting, they can finally get started.