James Harden exited with a hamstring injury just 43 seconds into Saturday's Game 1.
The Nets’ Big Three of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving were ready for Game 1 and a battle-tested Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday.
They lasted 43 seconds before their trio was down to two.
Harden left less than a minute into Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals Saturday with a right hamstring injury, potentially dealing a huge blow to Brooklyn’s championship hopes.
Harden appeared to grab at the hamstring on a drive to the basket on Brooklyn’s first possession against Milwaukee. The Nets called a timeout 43 seconds into the game and Harden went to the locker room.
James Harden (right hamstring) is out for the remainder of tonight’s game.
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) June 6, 2021
The Nets announced after the first quarter that he would not return to the game.
Harden missed 20 games because of problems with the hamstring in the second half of the season, including a pair of losses to Milwaukee in May. But he was healthy in time for the playoffs after he, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving were able to play together just eight times during the regular season.
Midway through the second quarter, the team told reporters that Harden had left the arena to undergo an MRI. Updates will be forthcoming.
James Harden has left the arena to have imaging done on his right hamstring, a team spokesperson confirms to ESPN.
— Malika Andrews (@malika_andrews) June 6, 2021
Information from The Associated Press was included in this report.
