James Harden—A Star on and off the Court
—Andrew Crosthwaite

Now in his ninth year in the NBA, James Harden is a star because of his scoring skills, his beard, and his unique fashion sense.

Harden is an excellent shooter, and in the 2017-2018 season he led the league in scoring and was named an NBA All-Star for the sixth season in a row. He also helped his team, the Houston Rockets, finish with the best record in the league. Harden was rewarded for his individual play this season by earning the NBA MVP Award.

Things weren’t always so easy for him. He grew up in Compton, Los Angeles, one of the most dangerous places in America. His family was poor, and his father was in jail for most of his childhood. Harden’s mother made sure he stayed out of trouble by encouraging him to play basketball. One day, he wrote her a note saying that he would be a basketball star. Even though he has asthma, Harden worked hard and achieved his goal when he entered the NBA in 2009. His mother still has that note.

年度最有價值籃球員——詹姆士．哈登
今年是詹姆士．哈登在美國職業籃球聯賽的第九年，他因為得分技能、鬍子和獨特的穿搭品味而成為明星球員。
哈登是一名出色的籃球射手，在二0一七—一八球季中，他是聯盟的得分王，且連續第六個球季入選美國職籃全明星賽球員。他也幫助他的球隊（休士頓火箭隊）打出聯盟的最佳成績。哈登本季的個人表現讓他獲頒美國職籃最有價值球員獎。
對他來說事情並非一直都這麼容易。他在洛杉磯郡康普敦市長大，那是美國最危險的地區之一。他的家庭貧困，而爸爸在他童年時期大部分的時間都在坐牢。哈登的媽媽為確保他不惹事生非而鼓勵他去打籃球。有一天，他寫了一張紙條給她說他要成為一名籃球明星。雖然哈登有氣喘，但他非常努力，在二00九年進入美國職籃時達成了自己的目標。他的媽媽仍留著那張紙條。

2018/10/03(三)