Warriors vs. Rockets, Game 5: Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston are available to play

After some worry that they would be out for Game 5 in a hotly contested second round series between the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets, Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston will in fact be available for tonight’s game.

While Livingston was just a little banged up, Iguodala suffered a hyperextended knee after making contact with Rockets guard Chris Paul — thankfully, that injury wasn’t very serious.

However, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported yesterday that there’s a sense among Warriors players that what Paul did was a dirty play.

The injury is believed to be minor, but the incident that led to it is being viewed quite differently. Members of the Warriors told Yahoo Sports that they believed it was “a dirty play” by Houston Rockets guard Chris Paul...As the series shifts to the Bay Area, tensions are elevating. Paul has been successful at agitating the Warriors, who have failed over the past two games to maintain focus.

Paul, of course, has a history of attempting to incite the Warriors, usually unsuccessfully in recent years.

Anyone remember a few months ago when Paul used a regular season win in February to take a jab at Iguodala?

After Paul had 23 points and 17 assists in Saturday’s victory, he tried to state the case that he’s the vital figure, not Iguodala.

“What did [Iguodala] say about the series last year? If he would have played, they would have swept us? Then he must be the X-factor,” Paul told Yahoo Sports, a reference to his own ‘X-Factor’ nickname. “That’s the punchline you needed, right?”

Anyway, I look forward to the teams settling this on the court in Game 5 and hopefully silencing Paul.

No matter the outcome of this series, we’re in the midst of a full-blown rivalry that far exceeds the conference rivalry that we previously had with the L.A. Clippers. And, perhaps more significantly, Chris Paul just happens to be the common denominator — must be a coincidence...?