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The Brooklyn Nets are in the midst of their most troubling stretch of play since signing Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in the summer of 2019. Losers of seven straight games, the Nets are facing off with reigning MVP Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets in a Sunday matinee. So, is James Harden playing to help stop his team's slide against the Nuggets?
Is James Harden playing vs. Nuggets
Harden is averaging 22.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 10.2 assists per game this season, typically eye-popping production that earned him a 10th consecutive All-Star berth. But those numbers aren't an accurate indicator of his impact on the Nets nor his level of play compared to past seasons.
Harden's 48.6 effective field goal percentage is well below league average, and he's shooting just 33.2% from beyond the arc. He has been an abject negative defensively, too, easy prey for the opposition when utilized in pretty much any capacity other than defending the post.
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His acclimation to new rules regarding player movement was the perceived basis for his early-season struggles, along with an obvious need to get into better shape. Now that Harden's style and conditioning have caught up to rigors of the regular season, though, injuries have become a concern. He has missed three of Brooklyn's last five games, first with a right hand strain and then tightness in his left hamstring.
Harden was initially listed as questionable on the Nets‘ injury report for Sunday's game, still nagged by a left hamstring issue. A subsequent update revealed Harden's unfortunate status for Brooklyn's tilt with Denver, robbing Kyrie Irving of another elite playmaker while Durant remains sidelined by a left knee sprain.
Updates to the Status Report for today’s game at Denver:
Claxton (left hamstring tightness) – OUT
Harden (left hamstring tightness) – OUT
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) February 6, 2022
Is Harden playing against the Nuggets? No. Considering he was essentially a game-time decision for Sunday's contest, though, it seems only a matter of time until he'll be back on the floor. But whether he'll be able to drag the Nets up from their current nadir upon returning remains to be seen, with the most recent evidence suggesting Harden may not be up to the task. There are also trade rumors swirling around him, though Nets head coach Steve Nash shut those down Sunday.
