James Harden has stepped up in Kevin Durant’s absence and just led the Nets to a sweep of the Los Angeles teams on the road, but Harden will be getting some much-needed help ahead of Brooklyn’s next game on Thursday.
A trio of Nets stars – Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and LaMarcus Aldridge – have cleared the NBA’s health and safety protocol. Durant has been out for 10 days, while Aldridge has not played since December 12 in a win over the Pistons.
It’s expected that Durant and Aldridge will be back on the court as the Nets return home to face the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday, but Irving’s return will have to wait until 2022.
Unless he receives a full COVID-19 vaccination, a process that would take around a month, Irving will be limited to appearing in away games. Irving still has to get back into game shape and build chemistry with the team after missing the entire season to this point, so it’s not guaranteed that he’ll play at the first opportunity. His first chance to play could come on Jan. 5 in Indiana. The Nets’ next away game after that is Jan. 12 in Chicago.
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