James Harden’s Trip to the Conference Finals Brings Back Rockets Memories

The Beard is now finally back in the NBA Conference Finals. It's been some time. After the Cleveland Cavaliers' Game 7 road win over the Detroit Pistons, superstar guard James Harden is now heading to his first conference finals series since 2018.

The last time he was in the conference finals was during his days with the Houston Rockets. The eight-year gap was filled with all kinds of trades and storylines, but Harden finally crossed the hurdle with the Cavaliers and the pair-up with Donovan Mitchell.

After the Cavs defeated the Pistons, Rockets fans' recognized their former star's achievement on social media. Given the kind of talk that surrounds Harden and his playoff struggles, he finally came through in the Eastern conference semifinals with huge games, scoring much like he did in Houston.

Congrats to James Harden. He’s back in the Conference Finals for the first time since the Rockets vs. Warriors 2018 series.🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/RrhcSIlAhO
— Bradeaux (@BradeauxNBA) May 18, 2026

Harden showed up with 24 points, 11 assists, three steals and five 3-pointers in Game 4. He followed that up with 30 points, eight rebounds, six assists and three blocks in Game 5. Harden had just nine points and six assists on 2/10 shooting in Game 7, but got the support he needed.

The search remains on for Harden's first NBA title. It seemed like a true and real possibility in the 2018 playoffs with the Rockets. Harden is known to be one of the greatest scorers of this generation, and he first made a name for himself as a Houston Rocket. His career catapulted into major stardom in H-Town.

James Harden Defined His Career With the Rockets

James Harden is going to the conference finals for the first time since his 2018 MVP season 🔥 pic.twitter.com/lhyu52VmB3
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 18, 2026

Former Rockets general manager Daryl Morey acquired Harden, then a sixth man, in a trade from the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2012. He was supposed to become a superstar to build around, and that's exactly what happened. The Rockets' best season during his tenure came in the 2017-18 season, a year that Rockets fans will look back on in mixed emotions.

This was the peak of the Harden era as the face of Rockets basketball and a fan-favorite. The Rockets made the blockbuster trade for Chris Paul from the Los Angeles Clippers, and it seemed like the pairing was destined for greatness. The Rockets won 65 games and had the best record in the NBA by a big margin.

Harden's Rockets were designed to beat the historic Golden State Warriors superteam with Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson. That is who the Rockets faced in an incredible 2018 Western Conference Finals where the winner would likely win the NBA Finals as well.

This was Harden's MVP season with the Rockets, where he truly established himself as one of the biggest names in the sport. Harden averaged 30.4 points, 8.8 assists, and 5.4 rebounds while shooting 45 percent from the field and 37 percent from three.

The Rockets cruised to the conference finals in 2018. Of course, Houston had the well-known 3-2 series lead over the Warriors and had them on the brink of losing. The Rockets just might've toppled Golden State, but Harden's running mate in Paul went down with a hamstring injury at the end of Game 5. That changed everything.

Harden had to lead the Rockets by himself for Game 7 at Toyota Center, and he did a commendable job as the Rockets were leading at halftime. Houston would end up missing 27 straight 3-pointers that costed them the game and a potential championship. Many among the Rockets argued the missed calls by the referees on the attempts costed them.

Regardless, Harden actually had a pretty solid series and did show up most of the time in 2018. He averaged 28.7 PPG, 6 RPG, 6 APG, and 2.1 SPG while shooting 42 percent overall. Harden did only shoot 24 percent from three and almost five turnovers per game. Harden scored 32 points in Game 7 on 41 percent from the field along with six assists and four steals.

He scored 30 points in a must-win Game 4 on the road and added a 27-point and 10-rebound double-double in a Game 2 home win.

Harden's last conference finals ended in a heartbreaking defeat. His Rockets also lost to the Warriors in the WCF back in 2015 as well. We shall see if the result will be different this time around.

A lot of Rockets faithful believe that his 2018-19 season was even better, and his MVP for that year was stolen. A case can be made for that as it was his best statistical season of his career and he literally carried the Rockets team during that season. Harden averaged over 36 points per game that year.

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