NBA Playoff Schedule 2017: Thursday's Game Times, TV Info, Odds and More
James Harden and the Houston Rockets will be fighting for their playoff lives on Thursday night against the San Antonio Spurs.
Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinals between the Spurs and Rockets will be the only playoff action of the night, so all eyes will be on Harden as he attempts to keep Houston alive.
| San Antonio Spurs at Houston Rockets | SA Leads 3-2 | 8 ET | ESPN | HOU -7 |
Unfortunately for the Spurs, and all NBA fans outside of Houston, the outcome of Game 6 could be decided by the health of Kawhi Leonard's left ankle.
Leonard left Game 5 after spraining his ankle and was unable to return. The Spurs provided a update to his status on Wednesday:
Given Gregg Popovich's tendency to leak as little information to the media as possible, it's likely we won't know about Leonard's status for certain until shortly before the game.
Losing Leonard would be a devastating blow to the Spurs' chances of closing out the series. While San Antonio has traditionally been a deep, well-rounded team under Popovich, they have relied on Leonard this season more than any other individual player in recent years.
According to Basketball-Reference, the Spurs' offensive rating was 10.2 points higher with Leonard on the court during the regular season. To put that into perspective, the Spurs offensive rating difference with Tim Duncan on or off the court never reached double digits during his career.
To make matters worse, San Antonio has been relying on him even more heavily in the postseason, with an offensive rating difference of 17.4.
If Leonard can't play, the Spurs will need to rely more on 39-year-old Manu Ginobili, who played a season-high 31 minutes in Game 5. Despite the extra rest in the playoffs, the Spurs might not know exactly how Ginobili will bounce back from the increase in playing time. Ginobili hasn't played 30 minutes in a game since December 2014.
If the Spurs are without Leonard and have to deal with a sluggish Ginobili, their offense could struggle to get going on Thursday night.
Despite being backed up against the wall, the Rockets shouldn't be panicking heading into Game 6, even if Leonard takes the court.
Since Harden joined the Rockets in 2012, Houston is 7-4 in potential elimination games. That includes an impressive comeback against the Los Angeles Clippers in 2015 when Harden helped the Rockets rally from 3-1 deficit to take the series in seven games.
| 2016 | GS | Game 5 | Loss | 35 |
| 2015 | GS | Game 6 | Loss | 14 |
| 2015 | GS | Game 5 | Win | 45 |
| 2015 | LAC | Game 7 | Win | 31 |
| 2015 | LAC | Game 6 | Win | 23 |
| 2015 | LAC | Game 5 | Win | 26 |
| 2014 | POR | Game 6 | Loss | 34 |
| 2014 | POR | Game 5 | Win | 17 |
| 2013 | OKC | Game 6 | Loss | 26 |
| 2013 | OKC | Game 5 | Win | 31 |
| 2013 | OKC | Game 4 | Win | 15 |
Houston's experience and success in elimination games has to give the Rockets a unique level of confidence entering Game 6.
According to OddsShark, the Rockets are favored by seven points heading into Game 6. That number is likely heavily influenced by the uncertain status of Leonard. The fact that he is listed as questionable less than 24 hours before tipoff indicates that he won't be 100 percent even if he does take the court, which swings the momentum in the Rockets favor.
Expect a big performance from Harden on Thursday night, and the Rockets to force a Game 7 in San Antonio on Sunday night.
Prediction: Rockets 109, Spurs 97
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