Houston Rockets Roster, Injury News 2017: All-Star Guard James Harden Expected to Play Through a Knee Injury
Houston Rockets guard James Harden is dealing with a knee injury right now, but it's not going to keep him off the court.
Harden sustained a bruised right knee during Friday's game against the San Antonio Spurs, and the following night, he led the Rockets to a 115–111 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. However, after the game, the five-time All-Star admitted that he actually came "pretty close" to not playing due to the injury.
"I wasn't feeling well at all, but the doc came in and just told me that there's going to be pain for a bit, but you can play through it," Harden said after Saturday's game, via ESPN. "It can't get worse, but it's going to be pretty painful until obviously you give it some time. Once he said that, I was like, 'Let's go,'" he continued.
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It's good to hear Harden say he has no intention to miss any game because they need him on the court if they want to stay atop the standings.
The All-Star guard also told reporters that the injury has limited his mobility.
"I wasn't moving like I usually move, but we won," he said. "Move on to the next game," he added.
Well, Harden is still one of the most gifted offensive players in the league even if he's not fully healthy, so there shouldn't be much of a drop off in production.
Harden is enjoying another stellar season with the Rockets and he's an early favorite to win the most valuable player (MVP) award this year.
The three-time All-NBA first team guard is averaging 31.5 points (first in the league), 5.2 rebounds, 9.1 assists and 1.8 steals in under 36 minutes this season. He is also shooting 45.3 percent from the field, 39.4 percent from beyond the arc, and 86 percent from the free-throw line.
