James Harden and the Houston Rockets figure to be one of the top contenders again in the Western Conference.

However, Harden certainly has some lofty aspirations in the future. Harden, who is now a part owner of the Major League Soccer team, Houston Dynamo, appeared in a welcome video for the Dynamo in which he promised to bring an NBA championship to the city “very, very soon.”

“This is my city and I’m here to stay,” Harden said. “I know I need to bring a championship in basketball and I will. That’s coming very, very soon. Just had to show my appreciation and let you guys know that I’m a part of this city and I’m here forever.”

Harden certainly has reason to be optimistic about the Rockets’ chances for a championship this coming season. After getting eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference semifinals, Houston went out and acquired All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook in a blockbuster trade including Chris Paul and several first-round picks.

Harden will be reunited with Westbrook, who he played with when the two were with the Thunder for the first three seasons of Harden’s NBA career. 

With the Warriors losing Kevin Durant to the Brooklyn Nets and Klay Thompson dealing with a torn ACL, the NBA championship picture is absolutely wide open and the Rockets could be one of the several teams to benefit. After all, Harden has been playing at an elite level over the past few seasons.

Harden is coming off a campaign in which he put together averages of 36.1 points, 7.5 assists and 6.6 rebounds while shooting 36.8 percent from deep. For the second consecutive season, the star guard was a finalist for the MVP Award after winning it for his performance during the 2017-18 season.

With Harden having Westbrook as his running mate, the Rockets certainly are firmly entrenched in the championship picture, and that clearly has Harden feeling very confident.