James Harden Injury Update: Return For Nets vs. Bucks Playoff Series Unknown

The trend of the Brooklyn Nets’ three superstars not being able to stay healthy at the same time has continued in the 2021 NBA playoffs. James Harden won’t play in Game 2 of Brooklyn’s second-round series with the Milwaukee Bucks, and it’s uncertain when he’ll make his return.

Harden left Game 1 on Saturday night with less than a minute gone by because of right hamstring tightness. The All-Star immediately underwent an MRI and didn't return to the court. The Nets went on to win, 115-107.

“He has high hopes and he wants to be back ASAP,” Nets coach Steve Nash said Sunday, via ESPN. “Now, I think we want to protect James, too. We want to make sure he's right.

“This is playoff time. This is time to take some risks, but it has to be right to take those risks -- we're not going to take any old risk. So, we hope he's back. He believes he can be back. But, we've got to see what happens and only can time can tell how he responds.”

When Harden injured his hamstring in the reg. season, he missed 2 games with hamstring tightness before playing in one game and then missing over a month with the hamstring strain.

Given that history, Nash said the team will be cautious, but James has "high hopes" of returning. https://t.co/XpDyOLXcwD
— Malika Andrews (@malika_andrews) June 6, 2021

Harden appears to have aggravated the injury that cost him 21 games in the regular season. The 31-year-old missed Brooklyn’s first two games in April with hamstring tightness. Harden returned on April 5, only to leave that game after four minutes. Harden sat out the next 19 games before playing in the Nets’ last two games before the playoffs.

If Brooklyn keeps winning, it should make it easier for the team to take a cautious approach with Harden. Behind 55 combined points from Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, the Nets cruised past the Bucks in the series opener. Blake Griffin and Joe Harris added 18 and 19 points, respectively.

As the Nets earned the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, Harden was arguably the team’s most important player. Brooklyn went 12-9 in the games that Harden missed with a hamstring injury. The 2018 NBA MVP was playing at an MVP-level before getting hurt.

The Nets dominated the Boston Celtics in the first round as its “Big 3” played in every game. Brooklyn eliminated Boston in five games, beating the Celtics by an average score of 125-109 in its four victories.

Harden averaged 27.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 10.6 assists and 2.0 steals per game in the first round. He shot 55.0% from the field.

Brooklyn is the heavy favorite to win the 2021 NBA Finals.