After missing each of the past three games, Brooklyn Nets star guard James Harden is active for Tuesday’s all-important matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Harden has been sidelined after aggravating a hamstring injury that plagued him toward the latter part of the regular season. With Kyrie Irving (ankle sprain) sidelined, it appears that the star guard has forced his way back into the lineup leading up to Game 5 of the Nets’ Eastern Conference Semifinals series against the Bucks.
This is absolutely huge news for Brooklyn. After winning the first two games of the series against Milwaukee, the team struggled big time in losing two consecutive. Now that the series is tied at two headed back to the Big Apple for Game 5, this is almost a must win for James Harden and Co.
Having proven himself to be among the most valuable players in the NBA, Harden led Brooklyn to a 28-8 record in 36 regular season games after being acquired from the Houston Rockets. The Nets were 20-16 in games he did not suit up in.
The high-scoring guard ended up missing 20 games late during the regular season with the same hamstring injury before aggravating it in Game 1 of the Nets’ series against Milwaukee.
With Harden back in the mix, Kevin Durant will have some more help as the Nets look to end a two-game losing streak against the Bucks and take a 3-2 series lead.