Harden feeling better after playing Game 5 with the flu

Perhaps James Harden should get the flu more often.

Playing through the illness in the Houston Rockets' must-win Game 5 against the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday, Harden had his best game of the series. He notched the first triple-double of his playoff career with 26 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, and finished with a game-high plus-23 rating as the Rockets rolled to a 124-103 victory.

Harden is still dealing with flu symptoms but is feeling better, according to ESPN's Calvin Watkins. He's expected to play without restriction in Thursday's Game 6, another elimination game for the Rockets, but this time on the Clippers' floor.

The Rockets didn't practice Wednesday, and head coach Kevin McHale offered up a pretty vague appraisal of his superstar's status.

"He looked OK," McHale said. "He had a little bit of a cough. We just had a meeting and watched some film. We didn't do anything. He looked OK."

Harden leads the NBA in postseason assists per game (8.5) and ranks third among all remaining players in scoring (26.6) and PER (24.8).