Best player in the series
Edge: Houston Rockets
This is likely an unpopular opinion, especially when the Warriors boast the likes of Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry, but this is 2018. For all his faults on defense and the perception that he takes nights off, 2018 James Harden will be the best player on the floor when these two teams meet.
Both Durant and Curry have dealt with injuries, especially Curry, which knock them down a notch or two, but Harden has had a transcendent year.
Offensively, he has no true weaknesses. Harden can distribute the ball at a superior level, ending third in assists per game in the league this year. He is an above average rebounder for a guard, but it is his scoring that makes him deadly. His ability to score from beyond the arc, in the lane and at the line make him an unstoppable force.
Even with superior defenders like Thompson and Iguodala tasked with guarding him in the series, Harden will continue to fill up the stat sheet. The Warriors can only hope to pester him into an inefficient night, at best.