Скачать или смотреть James Harden Highlights | The Game's in Trouble

James Edward Harden Jr. was born on August 26, 1989 in Los Angeles, California. He attended Artesia High School in Lakewood, California, where he averaged 13.2 points his sophmore year, leading his team to a 28-5 winning record. His junior year saw his production increase to 19 points, 8 boards, and 4 assists a game, leading Artesia to the California state title with a tremendous 33-1 record. Harden had similar stats during his senior year, going 33-2 and being named a McDonald's All-American and earning a second-team Parade All-American Honors.

Harden committed to Arizona State, averaging 18 points, 5 boards, and 3 assists a game. Led by Harden, the Sun Devils went 21-13 and finished in the fifth seed of their conference. The Sun Devils defeated Alabama State and Southern Illinois before falling to the defending national champions, Florida. Harden would score a career-high 40 points in an 88-58 win over UTEP on November 30, 2008. He finished his sophmore year of college averaging over 20 points, over 4 assists, and nearly 6 rebounds. This resulted in him being honored as an consensus All-American and named the Player of the Year by the Pacific-10 Conference.

James Harden is now one of the most prolific offense threats in the history of the NBA. His stepback has been compared to Kareem's skyhook in terms of being "ungardable."