The Houston Rockets take on the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday, with the stage set for a mini MVP battle between James Harden and Russell Westbrook.
Where: Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City.
When: Sunday April 5, 18:00 (UK time)
Watch live: Click here to watch on BT Sport online!
The Rockets have been among the best teams in the NBA this season and they have mostly done it without center Dwight Howard.
D-12 has been sidelined with a knee injury for much of the campaign, and so the responsibility of leading this team has fallen on the shoulders of Harden who has responded with an MVP-level year.
Harden is averaging 33.1 points over his last nine games while the Rockets have won six of their last seven to continue to push to land the second seed in the Western Conference.
Whether or not they do so remains to be seen, but what is for certain is that Harden is going to take some stopping in the playoffs.
Meanwhile, Westbrook has had to deal with a similar situation after Kevin Durant was ruled out for the rest of the season having missed significant playing time already this year.
Durant underwent a third procedure on his foot last month, and although Westbrook has been on a triple-double tear in recent months, his production is slipping as fatigue arguably catches up with him.
Having been asked to lead the team on a nightly basis and given the nature of his style and game, it is no surprise that the explosive point guard is feeling the strain and it is reflected in his recent numbers.
However, you can never rule him out as he thrives on being the underdog and being dismissed, and he will undoubtedly pose a threat to Houston on Sunday.
Nevertheless, given that Howard is back and Harden is still being Harden, the Rockets should come away with the win which will leave OKC in trouble with the New Orleans Pelicans chasing them down for that eighth and final playoff spot.
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