Rockets' James Harden says wrist ailment won't keep him out





PORTLAND, Ore. – Rockets guard James Harden circled the Moda Center court shooting 3s, his left wrist carefully wrapped, his game-day routine unchanged in any way beyond the black tape that indicated that his valuable wrist was not 100 percent right.

After days of therapy and treatment, discussions with Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni and trainers Jason Biles and Keith Jones, Harden encased his sore left wrist in ice and said nothing would change at game time either.

Harden said he had no intention of sitting out to remove himself from harm's way, having been assured that he cannot do more damage to the wrist he jammed in Denver on March 17 and has been giving him varying degrees of trouble ever since.

"These are big games for us," Harden said. "Easy decision. I get treatment. Got treatment before shootaround. Try to do anything to prepare myself to go out there and play a good game."

Harden hurt the wrist when he fell while trying to block a Mason Plumlee shot against the Nuggets, but played the next two games – averaging 38.5 points, 14 assists and seven rebounds – with no additional issues. He fell again in the final minute of the Rockets win against the Thunder last Sunday and struggled after he was hit on the wrist in Tuesday's game against the Warriors.

"It kind of went numb for a few minutes," Harden said of Tuesday's game when he made 5 of 20 shots and was clearly in pain on several occasions, including the 3-pointer he made in the final minutes. "You have to try to not think about it too much. You have to go out there and do whatever it takes to win.

"It'll keep getting better. But if I keep banging it and falling on it, it's going to keep going back to square one. Just got to limit banging it, keeping it away from any contact. It's my left hand. I do a lot with that."

Guard James Harden, right, tries to keep the Warriors' James Michael McAdoo at arm's length Tuesday, just like he has talk of taking a rest. Guard James Harden, right, tries to keep the Warriors' James Michael McAdoo at arm's length Tuesday, just like he has talk of taking a rest. Photo: Karen Warren, Staff Photographer Photo: Karen Warren, Staff Photographer Image 1 of / 84 Caption Close Rockets' James Harden says wrist ailment won't keep him out 1 / 84 Back to Gallery

In the four games since the injury going into Thursday's game against the Trail Blazers, Harden has averaged 30.8 points, 13.3 assists and 7.5 rebounds. He initially said the wrist was not giving him any problems, saying he wore the tape on his wrist because he liked the way it looked. There was no denying the issue on Tuesday.

"I've been dealing with it since it happened, honestly," Harden said. "I try not to put so much attention on it, go out there and try to win games. It'll get better. Hopefully."

Asked how he knows it will improve, Harden said, "I talk to trainers. That's what they tell me. I trust them. I believe them."

Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni said he has spoken with trainer Biles and Jones extensively to be confident that Harden cannot make the injury worse by playing and would have time to be 100 percent for the start of the playoffs either April 15 or 26 without sitting out. But he said he will also watch Harden especially closely.

"Jason, Keith, him, we talk to everybody; doctors," D'Antoni said. "You can't look inside and see how much it hurts. He says it's fine, it's fine. You have to have that trust. Just want to make sure. At 27, he knows what's at stake. There's no way he's going to jeopardize our playoffs.

"I watch him putting up a triple double like usual. You take the ball, you put it in his hands, you trust him. You trust him with his future. You trust him with our franchise. We have a lot of dialogue, a lot of talk. Obviously, he gets with Jason and Keith and if they're adamant, he has to trust them, too."

Once confident that Harden cannot make the injury worse just by playing, D'Antoni said he would leave the decision about whether to play through pain up to Harden, though he will perhaps coach with his fingers crossed that Harden will stop falling on it.

"It's not my wrist so I can't tell," D'Antoni said. "But he swears he's good to go and feels good.

"A nick can happen any time. He can fall again and it will hurt again. He wants to play through it and thinks he can. I trust him."

Other than those conversations, Harden said he would rather not talk about or even think about the issue. His intention, he said, is still to play all 82 games. Harden has not missed a game with an injury the past three seasons.

"Worry about what I've worried about all season, winning games," Harden said. "Doing whatever it takes to help my teammates win, making sure everybody is in a happy place. Everybody's good, we got a good vibe going on. We're going to keep doing that, as long as we keep that energy up, I'll take care of myself later.

"I just love it, man. You never know when this opportunity is going to be taken away from you. I take advantage of it. I love seeing the fans excited and happy and cheering the Beard."