How James Harden is helping a Michigan State shooting survivor heal

PHILADELPHIA – When 76ers star James Harden saw the news that John Hao — a 20-year-old Michigan State student and huge fan of the future Hall of Fame point guard — had been paralyzed from the waist down in the tragic shooting on the university’s campus earlier this month, Harden knew he had to do something.

“There’s things like that, where you sit back and think about just real life and things bigger than basketball,” Harden said after Philadelphia’s 110-105 win over the Memphis Grizzlies at Wells Fargo Center Thursday night, Philadelphia’s first game back from the All-Star break. “I heard that he was a fan of mine, so I wanted to get up on that ASAP and just see what I could do, anything I could do.”

Harden said members of his team heard about Hao’s situation, so a couple of them went to visit Hao at Sparrow Hospital, where he remains after the shooting. Harden sent sneakers, including a game-worn pair, donated to his GoFundMe and called him on FaceTime to offer him some encouraging words.

“I love when you’re smiling,” Harden said on the call, a video of which was shown on NBA Today on Thursday. “I love when you’re smiling, all right? I’m with you. I know it’s tough right now, but you have to stay physically strong, you know what I mean? You just gotta think positive things and keep pushing and fighting. I got you. I got some guys for you, too. I got some things coming your way, hopefully give you some encouragement and make you smile a little bit, you know what I mean? Let me know if you need anything else.”

The GoFundMe was started by Hao’s roommate, Argent Qian, to help pay for Hao’s medical expenses in the wake of the tragedy, which the page said left Hao paralyzed after he was shot in the back.

“John is a beloved member of…