“He’s a problem, man,” Harden told David Aldridge of TNT after the game. “He never gives up, never quits.”

After spending so much of the evening jostling for position and searching for daylight, James Harden of the Houston Rockets and Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder, two players in perpetual motion, finally stood still long enough to hug each other. It was a sign of mutual respect between former teammates.

The Rockets had outlasted the Thunder for a 118-116 victory at Toyota Center in Houston on Thursday night — a game that once again showcased the dynamic offense that these two players, both leading M.V.P. candidates, have produced this season. Westbrook finished with 49 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists, while Harden collected 26 points, 8 rebounds and 12 assists as the Rockets won their sixth straight.

Perhaps the only surprise was that neither player had a triple-double, but such is the high bar they have set for themselves. Westbrook has 16 triple-doubles this season. Harden has nine, and he is less than week removed from assembling one of the most ridiculous stat lines in league history: 53 points, 17 assists and 16 rebounds in a win against the Knicks last Saturday.

Harden was less explosive against the Thunder — he shot just 6 of 16 from the field — but was a pass-first facilitator for his teammates throughout, and especially on the one possession when it mattered most. With little time remaining in a tie game, Harden felt two defenders converge on him near the 3-point line. So he threw a dart to teammate Nene Hilario, who was fouled with seven-tenths of a second remaining. Hilario made both free throws, and the Rockets emerged victorious — despite having given up an 18-point lead.