When James Harden was in college at Arizona State, he would frequently run pickup on campus after games and practices to test out the concepts he learned in practice. The extra work diversified Harden's game and sped up his development. 

While Harden left Arizona State for the NBA in 2009, he has returned to Phoenix in recent offseasons and will incorporate current players into his workouts to try new moves on.

Harden began doing agility and football-oriented drills last year in Houston. 

“He plays off counteraction,”  said Antwi Atuahene, Harden’s teammate at ASU and close friend. “So he knows of everything that’s going on. That’s why he can adapt so quickly. He doesn’t force anything. He makes sure everything is in a flow. It’s all about adaptability with James. That’s the thing I think he adds over a lot of people. He knows what he brings to the table and makes everyone else adapt to him.”

Harden has been praised for how he has adapted his game since joining the Brooklyn Nets in January. The Nets are 28-7 in the regular season when Harden played and just 12-11 in games he didn't. 

Harden's knowledge of the league’s personnel also helped influence how Houston built its roster. In 2016, Harden knew the Rockets would be better served with Clint Capela at center instead of Dwight Howard. Harden similarly knew Gerald Green would thrive in Houston despite just playing pickup with him.