James Harden has come under fire for his performances, especially in the Playoffs. His struggles in the 2025 postseason led to prominent criticism from people like Shaquille O’Neal.
James Harden has been a household name in his 16 years in the NBA. He is one of the players who have cemented themselves as historic stars due to their production on the court. Harden’s prime had plenty of mind-boggling performances due to his absurd statistics.
Unfortunately, that individual success did not translate to team success, especially in the postseason. The furthest he reached was the Conference Finals with the Houston Rockets, but they lost to the Golden State Warriors.
Despite his struggles, Harden remains an icon to some people. However, people like Shaquille O’Neal feel there is an underlying problem to Harden’s postseason struggles.
During O’Neal’s career as a top player, he did not mind the media criticism too much. Of course, he had some incendiary moments, but he mostly focused on the game and his team.
For O’Neal, that is not the case for Harden. He feels the 2018 MVP is in his head too much when it comes to his performances in the postseason. This was evident during the Los Angeles Clippers‘ postseason run in 2025, when Harden had some poor performances.
During the full seven-game series against the Denver Nuggets, he had good counting stats. He averaged 18.7 points, 9.1 assists, and 5.4 rebounds per game. However, he was quite inefficient, which led to anger around the NBA community.
“When you care, I can see it in your eyes. We had a couple of Game Sevens and like, people did not step up. I knew they were not gonna step up because it was a topic of conversation,” O’Neal said on The Big Podcast.
“If you have the ‘I don’t care attitude’, you’re going to take 30 shots, and not eight, James Harden. When he was playing, I could tell he cares what people say. You’re a Hall of Famer, you’re still bringing that money, but you care what people say. You’re just adding to your narrative.”
As one of this generation’s best players, it would be a shame if Harden retires without a championship. That looks likely to happen because he is not getting any younger. He had a productive 2024-25 season, but he will be 36 by the time the 2025-26 season tips off.
Playing for the Clippers could lead to success, especially with Kawhi Leonard looking healthy game by game. However, an injury to Kawhi would close the Clippers’ championship window for a long time.
This will be a blemish on Harden’s career when he retires. He has been stellar, a phenomenal guard who deserves credit for his performances. Unfortunately, that will only be a footnote due to his lack of postseason success.
If O’Neal’s point can convince him, Harden should not pay too much attention to the narratives. He is a fantastic player who could be a winner if he locks in and pays no mind to others.
