Rockets Beat Stephen Curry, Warriors in OT Behind James Harden's Triple-Double

James Harden had a 44-point, 15-assist, 10-rebound triple-double, and Clint Capela added 29 points and 21 rebounds as the Houston Rockets beat the Golden State Warriors 135-134 in overtime on Thursday at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California.

Stephen Curry had 35 points, and Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson each added 26 for the 25-14 Warriors. The 22-15 Rockets have won 11 of their last 12 games and are fourth in the Western Conference.

The game wasn't without controversy courtesy of Durant, who appeared to step out of bounds with 5 seconds left in overtime, despite the officials missing it: 

Chris Paul and Joel Embiid took to Twitter to comment on the controversial no-call: 

Harden, who scored 11 points in the extra frame, hit a game-winning three-pointer with 2.7 seconds left in overtime:

HARDEN 3

He also tied the contest at 119 in regulation with another shot from downtown:

Harden Forces OT

James Harden Hero Ball Isn't Recipe for Rockets' Playoff Success

Harden's recent performances are optical illusions: It's hard for the brain to accept the realities we're witnessing.

The gamelogs provide stone-cold proof, but Harden's run is still beyond comprehension. Over his past 12 contests, he's averaging 40.1 points per night. The Rockets are 11-1 during that span. He's also amassed four triple-doubles.

He's taken on a larger load with point guard Chris Paul out with a hamstring injury and has led Houston back into the top eight in the Western Conference.

However, Harden's run doesn't seem sustainable. For one, Basketball Reference lists his usage rate at a mind-boggling 40.9 in his last 11 games before Thursday—a number sure to increase after his last performance.

At some point, he'll also have more off-nights shooting the ball, which could lead to more Houston losses. The team is just 3-6 in games Harden shoots 40 percent or worse from the field. While some Rockets (e.g. Gerald Green and Danuel House) have been getting hot from deep at times, the team depends on Harden's production to win, and if that's not there on a given night, then Houston is in trouble.

Harden likely won't have the offensive load on his shoulders forever, as Paul will eventually come back from his injury. However, Paul told Mark Berman of Fox 26 and other reporters that he had "no clue" when he would return.

A road win over the Warriors is impressive, and Harden's individual performance stands as one of the best we've seen all season. But provided Houston makes the playoffs, can Harden keep this up and lead his team to four straight seven-game series wins over some of the league's best teams?

That doesn't seem likely, but then again, betting against Harden lately has been a losing proposition.

Klay Thompson's Return to Form Should Make Warriors Dominant Once Again

Despite the Warriors' disappointing loss, some encouraging signs came out of the game.

One of them was Thompson's performance: He went 8-of-13 in the first half for 19 points to spur a 70-53 halftime advantage. He was a bit quieter down the stretch (3-of-7, seven more points), but he still finished 11-of-20 from the field.

Thompson hasn't found as much success this season compared to past years, as the 28-year-old was shooting just 43.9 percent entering Thursday. He also shot just 40.8 percent in December.

Thompson may have broken his slump with a few recent performances, however. Aside from his night against Houston, the eight-year veteran went 12-of-21 for 32 points in a 115-105 win over the Portland Trail Blazers last Saturday.

Per Basketball Reference, the Warriors are 13-3 when Thompson hits at least 46.2 percent of his shots and 11-12 otherwise. Thompson hit 48.8 percent of his shots last year and shot 47.2 percent from the field from 2014 to 2018, so a move closer to his usual averages seemed inevitable.

Despite Thompson's shooting and Curry and Draymond Green's 25 combined missed contests, Golden State is just 1.5 games behind the Denver Nuggets for first in the West.

With Thompson rounding into his previous sharpshooting form, Green and Curry healthy and center DeMarcus Cousins making progress on the practice floor after suffering a ruptured Achilles, the Warriors could put their foot on the gas and leave the rest of the Western Conference behind...as long as Harden doesn't keep scoring 40-plus points per game.

What's Next?

Both teams have road games on Saturday at 10 p.m. ET. Houston will visit the Portland Trail Blazers, while Golden State will play the Sacramento Kings.