The Brooklyn Nets were recently buoyed by the fact that Kevin Durant is finally available to play for Wednesday's marquee matchup against the Miami Heat. Unfortunately for the Nets, KD's return to the lineup was spoiled by news about Joe Harris and his ankle injury.

In an official statement by Nets general manager Sean Marks, it was revealed that despite efforts to try and get Harris back this season, the harsh reality is that he now has no other choice but to go under the knife again to address the problem. As such, Harris is now expected to miss the rest of the season:

“Although Joe worked diligently over the past few months to rehab his ankle and exhausted every possible avenue in order to get back on the court with his teammates, it has been determined that he will require additional arthroscopic surgery in the coming weeks,” Marks said in the statement (h/t Dave Early of ClutchPoints). “While it is expected that Joe will make a full recovery following the procedure, it will unfortunately result in him missing the remainder of the regular season and the playoffs.

RECOMMENDED (Article Continues Below)
Nets Jordi Fernandez next to Juwan Howard

Erik Slater ·

Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray appearing at an airport with bags packed and a plane ticket in hand

Fabian Diego Miguel de la Paz ·

Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez

Erik Slater ·

That's a tough blow for the Nets, who could have definitely benefitted from Harris' ability to stretch the floor. The 30-year-old underwent surgery on his left ankle in mid-November. Over the past few months, Brooklyn was holding out hope that a second procedure would not be necessary and that Harris would be able to come back at some point in the season. Things did not pan out as expected, though, and the former three-point champion is now going to miss the remainder of the campaign for the Nets.

“We know how deeply disappointed Joe is to miss this stretch run, but he remains a huge part of who we are as an organization, and while he won’t be able to contribute on the court his presence and positivity around the team will continue to be felt by all,” Marks said.

Joe Harris still has two years remaining on his current deal and he is expected to pocket around $60 million through 2023-24 (including this season). Hopefully, he's good to go when the Nets open their 2022-23 season in October.