James Harden just received some major off-court news.
The NBA star had his misdemeanor gun charge dismissed Thursday by a Texas judge, bringing an end to the case stemming from his June arrest in Houston.
According to ESPN and The Associated Press, Harden was arrested on June 13 after Houston police said a handgun was found in plain view inside his vehicle. He was charged with unlawfully carrying a weapon, a misdemeanor in Texas.
But less than two months later, the case is officially over.
Harden completed an alternative resolution program, leading to the charge being dismissed. The specific requirements of the program were not disclosed.
The dismissal means Harden avoids having the case continue to hang over him as the NBA season approaches. Instead of entering the year with an unresolved legal situation, he can now shift his attention completely back toward basketball.
For Harden, that is about as favorable of an outcome as he could have hoped for once the charge was filed.
The 11-time NBA All-Star has already dealt with plenty of attention throughout his career, but this situation had nothing to do with what happened on the court. Now, barring any unexpected developments, it appears he can officially put the incident behind him.
With training camp approaching, Harden can get back to worrying about basketball rather than a Texas courtroom.
