Houston Rockets Star James Harden Donates $240,000 to City of Houston

Houston Rockets star James Harden made news earlier in August when he pulled his ATV over to [...]

By John Newby

Houston Rockets star James Harden made news earlier in August when he pulled his ATV over to donate $10,000 to a family in the Bahamas. The family was trying to make ends meet through fishing, and Harden changed their lives by handing out cash. Harden also stopped multiple times throughout the day to take photos with fans and give money to other people fishing for their next meal.

Now that he is back in America, the charity is continuing. He isn't someone that will have his work defined by location. Saturday afternoon, Harden took part in a press conference to explain another donation that he recently made. Harden, by way of his 3 The Harden Way Foundation, gave $240,000+ to the city of Houston. The purpose was to make renovations to the basketball courts in the underserved communities.

"Every day, I wake up thinking about being legendary," Harden said. "You know, being the best basketball player I can be on the court. But on the flip side of that, I think about how I can impact the world, and obviously, take baby steps and baby steps, and ultimately, I want to be a legend off the court as well, in the community.

"Being raised in LA, growing up, playing outside in the parks and things like that, we need that more. That's one of the main reasons I came up with this idea, and also with Mayor Turner."

As Harden continued to explain, the modern era is more defined by social media and video games, but he thinks that it's time to get the kids back outside and playing. Renovating the basketball courts is a huge factor in this process.

While promising, this is only the beginning for Harden and his foundation. He has goals of making Houston legendary as it continues to recover from Hurricane Harvey. As he said, the renovations are only baby steps in the right direction, but he has faith that continued work will lead to even more changes.

Through his foundation, 3 The Harden Way, Harden has found ways to give back to his community and those in need. Using the James Harden Scholarship and the Monja Willis Scholarship, Harden has been able to help those experiencing economic hardships to pursue further education. He helps fund these scholarships through charity events such as softball and basketball games.

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