He wore No. 13, just as he does now. The beard? There was some foreshadowing, but like his game, no one could’ve predicted it would become something so big, so identifiable.
No doubt, James Harden was a national talent during his two years at Arizona State – he was a 2009 consensus All-American, after all – but he wasn’t so much a national brand. Even his college coach, Herb Sendek, didn’t see all this coming.
A perennial All-Star. An Olympic champion. An ascension to the NBA’s highest level, where this season he's the leading candidate for MVP, taking the Houston Rockets into the Western Conference finals, a must-see series against the Golden State Warriors that tips off Monday.