James Harden’s right thumb was fractured Feb. 24 during the Cavaliers’ 109-94 victory over the New York Knicks at Rocket Arena. That’s the bad news. The good news is the 36-year-old guard acquired Feb. 4 in a trade with the Los Angeles Clippers plans to play through the injury. Harden was list ed as questionable for the Feb. 25 game with the Bucks for most of the day. His status was downgraded to out at 7 p.m. Harden is hopeful of playing in the Feb. 27 game in Detroit against the Pistons. “Cavaliers guard James Harden injured his right thumb in last night’s 109–94 win over New York,” the Cavs announced in a news release. “A postgame examination by the Cavaliers’ medical staff, followed by X-rays taken today, confirmed a non-displaced fracture of the distal phalanx. “Harden will undergo treatment and continued evaluation. An update on his status will be provided as appropriate.” According to the website sciencedirect.com,” The distal phalanx is the back bone of the thumb tip and fingertip. However, the very distal tip includes only the soft tissues of the pulp and the nail edge.” Shams Charania of ESPN in a Feb. 25 television interview reported Harden will continue playing despite the injury. Just in on NBA Today — after hand specialist evaluation, Cavaliers star James Harden plans to play through his fractured right thumb: pic.twitter.com/xQz87Swecp — Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 25, 2026 “James Harden has been evaluated by a hand specialist,” Charania said. “I’m told he plans to play through that fracture in his right thumb moving forward. No surgery is required. So he will be playing on, but there will be a lot of managing of the pain and treatment over the next few days. “He wants to play through this injury. Expect him to wear a wrap or splint. He’s played through an assortment of injuries throughout his NBA career, and now this fracture in his right thumb will be just another one.” The news release from the Cavaliers does not report specifically when Harden was injured. He played 32 minutes and hit eight of 18 shots from the field against the Knicks. He was 4-of-7 from 3-point range and did not attempt a free throw. He dished out four assists. The Cavaliers are 6-1 since acquiring Harden from the Clippers for Darius Garland. Garland has yet to play for the Clippers. He missed nine straight games with the Cavs before the trade because of a sprained big toe on his right foot. He has missed eight games with the Clippers because of the same injury. ...read more read less