Since entering the NBA back in 2009 with the Oklahoma City Thunder, James Harden has made $185,482,251 through his NBA contracts, per Spotrac.
The first NBA contract Harden ever signed was his two-year, $4.76 million rookie deal with the Thunder. OKC selected Harden with the third overall pick in the 2009 draft out of Arizona State. He averaged 9.9 points per game as a rookie while making $4,004,160.
During his second year in the NBA, James Harden made $4,304,520 and increased his scoring average to 12.2. The Thunder appeared to have a really bright future with Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden and Serge Ibaka leading the way.
OKC got to the NBA Finals in 2012. Harden put up 16.8 points during the 2011-12 regular season and won the Sixth Man of the Year Award. The lefty was making only $3,706,270 while doing all of this.
However, Harden was setting himself up for a lucrative rookie-scale extension. The Thunder, despite losing to LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and the Miami Heat in the 2012 Finals in five games, had an incredibly high ceiling since Durant, Westbrook and Harden all had star potential and were young.
Unfortunately, Thunder general manager Sam Presti didn't want to pay the luxury tax and decided not to keep James Harden. Instead, Presti and the Houston Rockets agreed to a sign-and-trade deal that sent Harden to the Rockets. The Beard then signed a five-year, $78.78 million rookie-scale extension with the Rockets.
In his first season with Houston, James Harden made $5,820,416. His extension was set to kick in during the 2013-14 season. The 2012-13 campaign was the last season Harden made under $10 million annually. He averaged 25.9 points in his debut season with the Rockets and made his first All-Star team.
In 2013-14, James Harden earned $13,701,250. He put up 25.4 points and 6.1 assists and was starting to establish himself as one of the best scorers in the NBA. The California native continued to ascend to the NBA elite by averaging 27.4 points per game during the 2014-15 season. Harden made $14,728,844 that season.
The 2015-16 season was tumultuous for James Harden and the Rockets. Head coach Kevin McHale was fired after 11 games and reports started to surface that Harden played a big role in the firing. James averaged 29.0 points that season while making $15,756,438. His relationship with Dwight Howard was also starting to deteriorate but none of these things were going to stop the Rockets from signing Harden to a long-term extension.
After Howard left for the Atlanta Hawks in the summer of 2016, James Harden signed a four-year, $118 million maximum contract extension with the Rockets. During the 2016-17 season, Harden made $26,540,100 and averaged 29.1 points per contest.
The following summer, James Harden agreed to a four-year, $171 million Designated Veteran Player Extension. The Rockets superstar made $28,299,399 in 2017-18. That's the season Harden won the MVP award by averaging 30.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 8.8 assists. He also led the league in scoring.
James Harden made $30,421,854 in 2018-19 and was scheduled to make $38,199,000 in 2019-20 before the season was suspended due to COVID-19.
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