PROFESSIONAL CAREER
James Harden was the third overall pick by Oklahoma City in the 2009 NBA Draft. In his third and final season with the Thunder in 2011-12, he helped OKC reach the Finals and was named NBA Sixth Man of the Year. The Rockets acquired Harden via trade on 10/27/12 and he has since made eight straight All-Star appearances while leading Houston to the playoffs each year, including the Conference Finals twice. Harden was named MVP in 2017-18 and finished top-three in voting in each of the past four seasons. He has earned All-NBA First Team six times and Third Team once. Harden averaged at least 34.0 points, 7.0 assists, and 6.0 rebounds in each of the past two seasons; no other player has done so once in NBA history. Entering 2020-21, he averaged 25.2 points, 6.3 assists, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.6 steals in 833 career games with 620 starts.