Us Weekly

NBA's James Harden Arrested for Alleged Unlawful Carrying of Weapons: Report

Cleveland Cavaliers athlete James Harden was reportedly arrested for the misdemeanor charge of unlawful carrying of weapons.

Harden, 36, was arrested in Texas on Saturday, June 13, after local law enforcement discovered a handgun in his car, according to TMZ. Per to the outlet, the NBA star was released on bond within hours and a court date has been scheduled for Monday, June 22.

Harden has not publicly addressed his arrest. Us Weekly has reached out to the pro athlete's rep for comment.

Harden, who was drafted into the NBA in 2009, currently plays for the Cavaliers. The Ohio-based basketball team were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Finals in May by the New York Knicks. (The Knicks are currently facing off against the San Antonio Spurs in the 2026 NBA Finals, leading the series 3-1.)

"I think that they made shots, some, obviously, open and some just tough shots," Harden said of his team's loss during a press conference held last month. "I don't think we made really any. … I think we accomplished a lot, still short of the goal but I think we accomplished getting to the conference finals. Now, there's another level to get to [or] maybe two levels to get to."

He continued, "I think a lot of that is just, you know, maybe our first time together and the first two series we had opportunities to handle the series much quicker than we did, and we didn't take advantage of it."

Still, Harden admittedly found the Cavaliers' loss to be "a little frustrating."

"I think being here two and a half, three months [while] that team's been together for some years, which you still don't get brownie points for, but I think we're in a good space and we got some work to do, but we had a good season."

According to Harden, the Cavaliers are a "talented group" that he hopes to see excel in the upcoming NBA season.

"It's our first time going through whatever we were going to go through, and I think we accomplished a lot, you know, winning a Game 7 at home, winning a Game 7 on the road and getting to the conference finals," he added at the time. "Now, we have to take another two steps starting this summer, but take another two steps and being even better. Now, you get a full season of understanding what we have as a group and uh setting ourselves up, like, positioning-wise for better."

Harden previously played for the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Houston Rockets, the Brooklyn Nets, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Clippers. He joined the Cavaliers in 2025.

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This story was originally published June 13, 2026 at 1:27 PM.

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