James Harden has apparently met all his markers during his injury rehab, with Nets general manager Sean Marks and coach Steve Nash both saying the star just needs a few more days of going 4-on-4 or 5-on-5 in practice before he’s cleared to play.
Neither would put a timeline on Harden, but he’s expected back before injured guard Tyler Johnson, who should return in under two to three weeks.
“James is progressing well. He’s looking forward to having at least one or two more play days, which means he’ll play 4-on-4, 5-on-5 with the group in practice. And then hopefully if things go smoothly, he’ll be out and joining the guys in a game,” Marks said before the Nets’ 130-115 win over the Hornets Friday night.
“But he’s progressed well. He’s met his markers up to this point and we’ll just continue to progress him along and hopefully it’s not too much longer. At this point, I can’t put a timetable on whether it’s two days, five days, or so forth.”
Harden has a Grade 1 hamstring strain, and missed a fifth straight game Friday as the Nets beat the Hornets, 130-115. He hasn’t played since an April 5 win over the Knicks, but worked out Thursday and was slated to do so again Friday.
“He’s on the right track and hopefully it won’t be long before he’s back,” Nash said. “But there are still markers. There’s James, who wants to play [now], and there’s performance that wants to lean on science and be safe. They’re two disparate opinions and that’s what we’re here for, is to find the middle ground and make sure that he returns safely but also as soon as he can.
“At this stage in the rehab, it’s about high-intensity play. So can he get out there and play 1-on-1, 3-on-3, 4-on-4, 5-on-5. And can he do it consistently over two or three times in a row, not necessarily in back-to-back days, but two or three bouts of high intensity play in a row, then recover, then do it again and prove that he can meet the demands, the intensity and have no ill effects the next day in his performance.”
Nash said Johnson (knee) is still working up to high intensity, and is behind James, but added “hopefully it’s not another 2 or 3 weeks: It’s inside of that.”
With Spencer Dinwiddie in Los Angeles making progress in his ACL rehab, Marks refused to rule out the prospect of him returning by the playoffs.
“I’d never bet against Spencer Dinwiddie,” Marks said. “He has a chip on his shoulder, he loves to prove people wrong, so who am I sit up here and say he’s not going to be able to do something? That’s only going to backfire.
“The primary concern for Spencer is his long-term health, not do anything that’s detrimental to his career. So if there’s an opportunity for him to come back and play during this playoffs, we’ll have to evaluate at that time.”
