10 Shocking Facts About James Harden..

**SPEAKER_1** (0:00)
From a platinum recording artist, to being in multiple professional sports, these are 10 things you didn't know about James Harden. And you probably didn't know about number 10 on our list. Harden has a dark past. See, back in 1998, when Harden was just 9 years old, his dad was caught selling drugs and got sentenced to prison, leaving Harden alone and defenseless in the gang capital of the world, Compton, California.
So, if Harden was going to make it out alive, he needed to stay off the streets. And that's exactly why his mom signed him up for his school's basketball team. This one decision not only kept Harden away from the gang life, but it also sparked his lifelong dream of joining the NBA. Although it would turn out that basketball alone couldn't keep Harden out of trouble. Yeah, because I bet you didn't know number 9 on our list.
Harden assaulted a girl. Back in 2002, a teenage James Harden was playing basketball in gym when a girl from his class walked in and made the biggest mistake of her life. Interrupting Harden's game just to flirt with him. But our boy Harden is not a simp, alright? So he decided to get rid of this girl for good. By literally chucking a basketball, full power right at her face. Yeah, this really happened. Just listen to Harden's mom talk about it. He threw a basketball at a girl that kept bothering him. And I think she was flirting with him. So, sorry.
Ha ha ha ha ha ha. Even Harden's mom is a savage. Although, Harden's focus on basketball wasn't for the NBA. Yeah, there's no way you know about number 8 on our list. Harden only got good at basketball so he could eat more McDonald's.
See, back in 2003, when Harden was a freshman in high school, he wrote a note to his mom saying that he was going to be a star one day. Problem was, being chubby with asthma meant that he barely moved during games. The kid just stood still, took jump shots, and never ran to the basket. So, his high school coach Scott Para had to find a way to push Harden.

**James Harden** (2:16)
We've read before about the bet you used to make with him that if he could get to the free throw line a certain number of times, you would buy him a hamburger. Harden now averages almost 11 free throws per game. Do you still have the urge to go buy him hamburgers?
Well, I think he could buy the hamburgers now.

**SPEAKER_1** (2:32)
This one deal took Harden's game to a whole new level, helping land him a spot at Arizona State University. Now, college is pretty expensive, but Harden has always found a way to make money, especially with number 7 on our list. Because I'm sure you didn't know, Harden's beard is for sale? Yeah, back in 2008, when Harden was a sophomore at Arizona State, he got tired of shaving his facial hair all the time, so he decided to just stop shaving. And by 2012, Harden accomplished his NBA dreams, playing three seasons with OKC at this point, and the beard we all know and love was finally finished growing too. Now, for most people, spending years growing out a beard would eventually get annoying, and they would just shave it off. But for Harden, it's just not that simple. This beard became iconic, and if you want him to shave it, you're going to have to drop millions. Obviously, your beard is like a big part of your brand.
Is there a minimum dollar amount that you would cut it for? Like, what if I was like, if I put 10 million on the table right now in cash?

**James Harden** (3:39)
No, yeah.

**SPEAKER_1** (3:40)
What about five?

**James Harden** (3:41)
Yeah, I'm going to cut it, because then it's going to go like that.

**SPEAKER_1** (3:43)
One million?

**James Harden** (3:44)
No. That's not enough? You can keep that. 1.5?
Ten, you just killed it.

**SPEAKER_1** (3:52)
Ten million dollars? Jesus. But, I mean, Harden's life is going great. Dude's got ten million dollars with the facial hair. He's a rising star with the Thunder. What could go wrong? Well, you don't know about number 6 on our list. Harden got betrayed by the team he loved the most. See, in 2012, alongside Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant, Harden helped turn the OKC Thunder into one of the best teams in the NBA, to the point where they even made it to the finals for the first time in 16 years. And in this process, Harden became family with the entire Thunder organization. So the team meant the world to him, and he was looking forward to being an OKC for years to come. But just a week before the 2012 season, Harden got a phone call that changed his life forever. It was the Thunder's GM, Sam Presti, offering Harden a $55 million contract. With only one condition, Harden only had an hour to accept. This is the biggest decision of Harden's life, and they only gave him an hour. That's just disrespectful. And in Harden's eyes, he was being pressured into a bad deal. So he turned the contract down, and they agreed to renegotiate after the season.