James Harden might have wanted to celebrate. He might have wanted to pump a fist, pound his chest, maybe smile.
He could not. He had spent everything his tank could hold.
With the Rockets running out of bodies, and low on any reliable help, Harden would not let them lose. He would do all he could, everything he could imagine, dominating as he never had before until finally, he nailed a 3-pointer, completed a four-point play and had a franchise-record 60 points, lifting the Rockets past the Magic, 114-107, on Tuesday in an individual masterpiece.
Harden broke Calvin Murphy's franchise record of 57 points, his own career high of 56.