James Harden was the third overall pick by the Thunder in the 2009 NBA Draft. There were a lot of expectations on him with regard to the future of the franchise. However, he shocked the league only three seasons later with his trade to the Houston Rockets. His former teammate Perry Jones recalled that experience on Run Your Race.
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On the podcast, Jones was asked about his time with Harden. After saying only great things about The Beard as a teammate, he talked about the moment he realized that Harden was no longer his teammate. The 32-year-old said that the team was having a very light practice session one day and as they were completely unaware of what was going on with Harden’s trade situation, they didn’t bat an eye when he was called into the office.
Moments later, Jones recalled seeing Harden in the locker room when he was picking up his shoes and car keys.
“I was like, ‘What’s up, James?’ [He said], ‘It’s woo.’ What the f**k does that mean, bro? He just left… What that means? Somebody was like, ‘It’s over.’ I was like, what the f**k y’all are talking about. Couple of hours later…traded to the Houston Rockets blah blah blah… I was like, oh, man, that’s what he meant. He’s out of here.”
The 32-year-old said that he wasn’t aware of the deal that Harden had signed with the Rockets. The brief conversation he had with him in the locker room was the last time he talked to him in that season. Their next conversation happened when they played against one another but Harden was already a different player by that time.
Switching to the Rockets worked well for Harden
After joining the OKC in 2009, Harden showed improvement every season. According to Stat Muse, he averaged 9.9 points, 12.2 points, and 16.8 points per game in the three seasons he played for the Oklahoma franchise. However, after that move, Harden exploded and quickly earned a reputation as one of the greatest scorers of the game.
In his first season with the Rockets, he averaged 25.9 points per game in the regular season. He also averaged 4.9 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and 1.8 steals while shooting 43.8% from the field. In the following years, he continued to put up similar or better numbers for the franchise, making the OKC regret letting him go.
Harden peaked as a scorer from the 2017-18 season to the 2019-20 season. He averaged 30.4 points, 36.1 points, and 34.3 points per game respectively. He shot over 44% from the field for three seasons and was awarded the league MVP title in 2018 for his incredible run in the season.
