James Harden's Girlfriend Paije Calls Out 'Cheating' After Cavaliers-Knicks Game

The Cleveland Cavaliers had to win two straight stressful seven-game series in the NBA Playoffs to meet the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals.

This series hasn't been as stressful. At least, it hasn't stressful for viewers or Knicks fans, given that they've dominated the Cavaliers through three games and hold a commanding 3-0 series lead heading into Game 4 in Cleveland on May 25.

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) | David Richard-Imagn Images

One player who simply hasn't been performing up to his capabilities in this series is star guard James Harden. The 2018 NBA MVP averaged 23.6 points per game during the regular season this year, but hasn't managed to eclipse 19 in his three games against the Knicks.

One reason for this is that Harden isn't getting to the free-throw line nearly as often as he usually does. Naturally, Harden is aware of this and has been making his frustration with referees apparent with the referees because he feels that he's not getting a fair shake.

Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden (1) | David Richard-Imagn Images

James Harden's Girlfriend Paije Rips 'Cheating' Refs After Cavaliers Playoff Loss to Knicks

Harden isn't alone in feeling this way. His girlfriend, Paije Speights, is also convinced that her man isn't getting a fair shake.

And Speights made this clear with a post she made to her Instagram story after the Cavaliers' 121-108 loss to the Knicks on Saturday night. She wrote in the post, "these refs are cheating soo bad man, my blood boiling."

Speights is at almost all of Harden's games, and is well within her rights to feel any type of way about how these games are being called.

But the bottom line is that the Knicks have been outplaying the Cavaliers by a wide margin to this point in the series, and referees have little (if anything) to do with that.

Perhaps the referees will be more on Harden's side during Game 4. It's safe to assume that Speights will be at the arena, urging them to do so, or at least urging Harden to overcome whatever unfair treatment he believes he's being subjected to.

James Harden Postgame After Game 3 Loss vs Knicks:

“[0:00] We could never really get a grip on the game…more times than not they [Knicks] just played a little bit faster & made some shots—[0:20, Little Rest] No excuses but in reality, definitely. You can see it. A lot of open… pic.twitter.com/rUk3rtLvZN
— Dylan🔮🎆 (@dillybar2145__) May 24, 2026

Add us as a preferred source on Google