Nets star James Harden to return to lineup Saturday vs. Warriors
The Brooklyn Nets' "big three" of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving was nowhere to be seen during Wednesday night's loss to the Denver Nuggets, their third defeat in a row. Durant is still out with a knee injury, Harden sat with a hamstring ailment and Irving was not in the arena due to his status as a player unvaccinated against COVID-19.
Irving is allowed to play in road games, so he'll presumably be available for the Nets' Saturday tilt in the Bay Area against the Golden State Warriors. Brooklyn head coach Steve Nash had good news for the team Friday regarding Harden's availability for the Warriors battle as well.
With his team stuck in a cluster of six strong teams atop the Eastern Conference separated by just two games, Nash will likely need Harden to stay healthy, since Durant could be out through all of February and Irving has shown no signs of having a change of heart with the vaccine. Perhaps uncoincidentally, the Nets currently have the best road record in the East at 17-6 but are an average 12-13 at the Barclays Center this season.
Entering Friday's action, Durant leads the NBA in scoring at 29.3 points per game, while Harden cracks the top 20 at 23.0 points per contest, tied with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Harden is tied with Chris Paul of the Phoenix Suns for the highest assists average at 10.1 per game.
The Nets' game against the Warriors will kick off a difficult five-game road trip, with contests against the Suns, Sacramento Kings, Utah Jazz and Denver Nuggets also on the docket. Brooklyn and Golden State are scheduled to tip off at 8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.
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