James Harden becoming an insurmountable problem for Cavaliers

This season has started a lot like how the last one ended, Harden a step slow and completely unengaged on the defensive end.

Take the following play from the third quarter Monday's loss as an example. Harden's lack of effort was not just embarrassing but unacceptable. Guarding no one while standing near the basket, he was outworked for a rebound off a Hornets miss by Hornets center Ryan Kalkbrenner, who kicked the ball out to the perimeter for guard Sion James.

Harden had a better-than-front-row view of it all as he stood there watching James take an open shot without any effort to close out. The sequence ended with Harden picking up a shooting foul on Grayson Allen after again failing to come up with a defensive rebound.

If a first-year player showed that kind of effort, he'd be assigned to the G League the next day. Harden, in the first year of a three-year, $97M extension, will likely be back in the Cavs' starting lineup on Wednesday against the Knicks.

His decline, should it persist, will be hard for Cleveland to overcome. Having long been established as a liability on defense, Harden brings nothing to the table without consistency on the offensive end.

The Cavaliers have four consecutive playoff appearances since acquiring shooting guard Donovan Mitchell, including last year's ECF trip (the franchise's first since 2018). But based on the slow start to this season and an improved Eastern Conference, their core may have already peaked.

Monday marked the latest in a growing list of recent duds from Harden. For Cleveland, it might be its new normal.