Is James Harden richer with the Nets? Peek inside his new net worth
Former NBA MVP James Harden finally got what he wanted, a trade to the Brooklyn Nets to join Kevin Durant & Kyrie Irving. Is it possible that James Harden’s net worth could soon grow larger than his beard?
After months of breaking the NBA’s COVID protocols, disrespecting the Houston Rockets franchise, and apparently shoveling his face with potato salad, James Harden was finally freed of his H-Town woes when he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets last week to play alongside former teammate Kevin Durant & Kyrie Irving. Now, having made his Nets debut on January 16th, it appears that he’s in for one heck of a season.
But will “The Beard’s” time in Brooklyn cash out as it did in Houston? Let’s dive into James Harden’s net worth and find out!
Harden’s impressive career
Drafted out of Arizona State University in the 2009 NBA draft, James Harden was selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder (OKC) with the third overall pick. For three seasons, Harden played alongside superstar prospects Kevin Durant & Russell Westbrook, where the OKC Thunder made the 2012 NBA Finals, albeit in a losing effort.
James Harden was moved to the Houston Rockets in 2012, due to his rising price tag and the Thunder’s priority of winning with Durant, Westbrook, and Serge Ibaka.
At Houston, “The Beard” would go on to earn the award of league MVP in the 2017-2018 season, a year where he would also take his team to the Western Conference Finals but would go on to lose to the Golden State Warriors. James Harden also had a slew of All-Star teammates during his H-Town tenure in which he couldn’t establish any chemistry, including the likes of Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, and Russell Westbrook.
Harden heads to Brooklyn
In the 2020 offseason, Houston would go on to learn they indeed “had a problem”, as their marquee star James Harden officially wanted out of H-Town, behaving in inappropriate ways such as breaking the league’s COVID protocol and setting his sights on a better team situation where he could rewrite the “history of Harden”.
On January 13th, 2021, it was officially announced that the Houston Rockets had finally traded James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets in a three-team deal, sending him, his net worth, and his beard packing.
The Brooklyn Nets received James Harden in the deal. The Houston Rockets received an impressive package, including Victor Oladipo, Rodions Kurucs, Dante Exum, and four-unprotected first-round picks. The Indiana Pacers received Caris LeVert, as well as a 2023 second-round pick from Houston.
Harden starts with a bang
In his first two games with the Brooklyn Nets, Harden has scored over thirty-points on both occasions as well as averaged nearly nine-rebounds, thirteen-assists, and a block.
Harden has also apparently hit the salads & Stairmaster, appearing nearly fifteen-pounds lighter than he did with Houston last week. Man, I guess he really did want out badly.
Harden seems to be gelling well with his new teammate Kevin Durant, picking right back up where they left off in Oklahoma City. The real question is how will Harden gel with Kyrie Irving, who has seemingly taken a break from basketball and is off doing what appears to be “work for the soul”. When Irving does decide to return to the court, that’s just another ball handler who will be wanting his share of touches, too.
James Harden net worth
Currently, James Harden has two years left on his supermax extension, likely to guarantee the superstar a whopping $228 million through the 2022-2023 NBA season. Harden has only $59 million left on his current contract, but will likely receive one last giant NBA contract given he’s only the age of thirty-one and is still playing basketball at an elite level.
As reported by Forbes, James Harden has an estimated net worth of $47.7 million and is currently in the top five of the richest NBA players.
Harden being in Brooklyn also opens up the window to new endorsement opportunities given the stature of New York City. After all, Harden signed a thirteen-year deal with Adidas in 2015 worth nearly $200 million, and he also has other endorsement deals with State Farm, Electronic Arts, and BodyArmor.
