The Brooklyn Nets lost a crucial part of their Big 3 after James Harden left the floor 43 seconds into Game 1 against the Milwaukee Bucks with a right hamstring injury.
The Nets announced that Harden would not return to the game.
Harden appeared to injure himself on Brooklyn’s first possession of the game as he came up limping after driving into the lane and firing a pass to teammate Joe Harris. Harden was seen walking to the locker room after getting subbed out of the game.
The 31-year-old missed 21 games due to a hamstring injury but returned for the final two games of the regular season. Harden played in all five games of the Nets’ first-round series against the Boston Celtics averaging 27.8 points, 10.6 assists and 7.2 rebounds and shooting 55.6 per cent from the field and 47.5 per cent from three-point range.
The Nets acquired Harden from the Houston Rockets in a blockbuster trade in January. Brooklyn sent four first-round picks and four pick swaps, along with Caris LeVert, Dante Exum and Rodions Kurucs to Houston for Harden, with the Indiana Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers also involved.
In 36 regular season games with the Nets, Harden averaged 24.6 points, 8.5 rebounds, 10.9 assists and 1.3 steals in 36.6 minutes per game while shooting 47.1 per cent from the field, 36.6 per cent from three and 85.6 per cent from the free-throw line.
