The Bulls were doing what they could to tank this game ahead of time, with Josh Giddey and Nick Richards late additions to a growing Bulls injury report that also includes Matas Buzelis, Jalen Smith, Anfernee Simons, and Zach Collins.
Cleveland fans made Harden immediately feel welcome. The Cavaliers handed out beards on a stick to the sellout crowd, and Harden got a standing ovation when he was introduced in pregame warmups. "The crowd is always crazy. Every time I come here as a visitor, they're crazy about you know, the Cavs and The Land and very loyal and they show up every single night," he said. "It's one of the things that I was mostly excited about. So tonight was no different."
