James Harden of the Brooklyn Nets. | AFP photo
New York—Brooklyn star guard James Harden will miss Thursday’s third game of the Nets’ NBA playoff series against Milwaukee with a strained right hamstring, Nets coach Steve Nash said Wednesday.
The Nets seized a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference series with two home triumphs despite the absence of Harden after only playing only 43 seconds of the opener and missing game two.
READ: No Harden, no problem as Nets clobber Bucks
Harden, the 2018 NBA Most Valuable Player and a three-time league scoring champion, had missed 20 of 21 contests late in the season due to the hamstring injury.
Nash said Harden is “progressing nicely” but there is no timetable for his return.
Harden and Jeff Green, out since the first round with a left foot injury, will both travel with the Nets to Milwaukee but neither will play Thursday, according to Nash.
Green said he was hopeful of playing in game four.
“It’s almost like having a really, really bad sprained ankle but on the bottom of your foot,” Green said. “I’m able to get back out there now and run, but the cutting is something that hasn’t come back yet.
“I’m great. Progressing well. Feeling good. Been a slow process but I’m getting better day by day. Maybe game four… I’ve got to see how it feels next couple days to get back out there on the court.”
/bmjo