NEW YORK – Brooklyn Nets star James Harden played just four minutes before being dropped for the rest of Monday night’s game against the New York Knicks because of tension in his right hamstring.
Harden’s brief comeback came after he missed the Nets’ last two games while dealing with the same grasp.
Before the game, Brooklyn coach Steve Nash said that Harden would have no minute restrictions and that the team would monitor him overnight.
“We definitely don’t want to tire you,” Nash said before the complaint. “So we are going to do our best, which is sometimes very difficult. We will try to limit your minutes if we get the chance.”
Nash reiterated that the image of Harden’s hamstring did not reveal structural damage, so the team looked at him and his coaching staff to decide when he felt good enough to play.
“I think he is just in a position where there was fatigue,” said Nash. “And the sweep was clean, and he completed some training and it feels good to go.”
The Nets were already without Blake Griffin (injury maintenance), Kevin Durant (tendon injury), Tyler Johnson (knee pain) and Landry Shamet (ankle sprain). Nash said he does not expect to play Griffin in both halves of any other consecutive game.
Harden, one of the leaders of the MVP league, has an average of 26.1 points, 8.9 rebounds and 11.2 assists for the Nets.