Did Los Angeles Clippers star James Harden shave off his beard? No. But the deep fake image is hard to unsee.
Harden is a lock to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer once his playing days are over. During a career that is entering its 16th season, the former Houston Rockets great has earned All-Star honors on 11 occasions. He was the Sixth Man of the Year in 2011-12, and then the league’s MVP six seasons later.
The man who has helped lead 11 teams to the playoffs will go down as one of the NBA’s greatest scorers. However, for as good as he’s been at putting the ball in the basket, many sports fans will remember him more for his world-renowned beard.
There has been speculation for years that maybe one day he might shave it all off. Well, some NBA fans thought he actually did this week via a pretty good deep fake image that made its way all over the interwebs.
- James Harden stats (2024-25): 22.8 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 8.7 APG, 1.5 SPG, 35% 3PT
James Harden has not shaved off his iconic beard
The photo, which can be found above, is a pretty solid edit of what the NBA great would look like without his beard. However, all indications are that the shot of him working out at the Clippers’ practice facility is a complete ruse. And as early as last week, he still very much had his beard in a post on his Instagram account.
Maybe one day the soon-to-be 36-year-old might go bare-faced. However, his beard is a huge part of his brand. With him in his final seasons of peak money-making opportunities in the league, he is sure to hold on to it for at least a few more years.
James Harden signed a new two-year, $81.5 million contract with Los Angeles this summer.
