Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden posted 23 points, nine rebounds, five assists, two steals, and one block in Wednesday's 125-120 Game 5 victory over the Toronto Raptors. The former MVP made half of his eight three-point attempts and finished 7-for-13 overall from the field. On the downside, Harden was responsible for six of Cleveland's 14 turnovers, yet he was the team's only starter with a positive plus/minus, finishing with a plus-10 in 40 minutes. Harden has struggled to handle the ball throughout the series, recording 6.0 turnovers per game. However, he's done a great job overall, averaging 22.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, 6.2 assists, and 2.0 steals, while shooting close to 50 percent. He's gone 41.0 percent from deep on nearly eight attempts per game.

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Dennis Schroder was the X-factor in Wednesday's 125-120 win over the Toronto Raptors, scoring 19 points and dishing out two assists in 21 minutes off the bench. Schroder played the entire fourth quarter and scored 11 points as Cleveland turned a 103-100 deficit into a Game 5 victory. The German veteran was 7-for-11 from the field, including 3-for-6 from behind the arc. So far, Schroder's role has been quite limited in the first-round series, but he showed on Wednesday that he is ready to step up if called upon. Prior to Wednesday night, the 2023 World Cup MVP had averaged only 4.0 points per game against Toronto.

Toronto Raptors guard/forward RJ Barrett continued his fantastic series against the Cleveland Cavaliers with his first double-double of the season in Wednesday's 125-120 loss, posting game highs with 25 points and 12 rebounds. He also registered five assists in 38 minutes, going 9-for-19 from the field with a 2-for-5 record from three-point range. With Brandon Ingram (heel) struggling in the postseason, Barrett has really stepped up his game. He leads Toronto in scoring with 24.4 points per game and in rebounding with 7.2 per game. Additionally, Barrett has averaged 3.8 assists and 1.0 steals, making 46.2 percent of his three-point attempts. Ingram might be completely out of the lineup for Game 6 after exiting early on Wednesday, potentially allowing Barrett to have an even greater impact.

Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves (oblique) returned to action in a bench role on Wednesday against the Houston Rockets and tallied 22 points in a 99-93 loss. This was Reaves' first game in four weeks. While the team elected not to start him, the 27-year-old was heavily involved in the action, logging 34 minutes. Reaves was rusty and scored most of his points at the free-throw line, going 12-for-13. He had a 4-for-16 record from the field and made only two of eight attempts from downtown. Although he had trouble scoring the basketball, Reaves did a good job as a playmaker, registering six assists. Additionally, he grabbed six rebounds and blocked one shot. Given that Reaves handled his normal workload in his comeback game, it appears likely he will return to the starting lineup in Game 6 on Friday.