Warriors Players Reportedly Downplaying Severity of James Harden's Eye Injury

Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported on Friday that numerous Golden State Warriors are not buying the severity of Houston Rockets guard James Harden's eye injuries.

"They were talking about some of the shots he was shooting during the game, then he gets to the free-throw line and he's squinting like he can't see it," Haynes reported. "They're not going to take anything for granted, they're going into go in for the kill in Houston."

Per Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com, "Harden suffered contusions in both eyes and a laceration on the inside of his left eyelid when he was inadvertently hit in the face by Golden State's Draymond Green a little more than five minutes into the Rockets' Game 2 loss on Tuesday."

Harden scored 29 points in 34 minutes in his team's 115-109 loss to Golden State in their second-round Western Conference playoff series.

That performance created optimism regarding Harden's Game 3 status, and the NBA's leading scorer left no doubt about it on Thursday.

"If I played barely seeing last game, what makes you think I'm going to sit out Game 3?" Harden told reporters.

The 2017-18 NBA MVP made it clear he was still encountering problems, however.

"Nah, still tough," Harden told reporters when asked about his pain level. "Especially in bright lights. But I can see y'all a little bit better, so that's all that matters."

Harden will have had three-plus days from that moment to further recover from the eye injuries, as tipoff isn't scheduled until 8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.

Commentary on Harden's eyes, his Game 3 status and his opponents' opinions on the matter hasn't been the only storyline in this soap opera of a series.

The talk following the opening matchup revolved around the Rockets' strong feelings regarding the officiating, specifically Harden noting that he wanted a "fair chance." The Warriors did not agree.

Golden State and Houston can make a case for being the NBA's best two teams, and after last year's heated seven-game Western Conference Finals series, there is no love lost between the two sides.

The Warriors lead their current matchup 2-0.