NBA Playoffs: Nets Don't Want to Rush James Harden Back After Kyrie Irving Injury

The Brooklyn Nets have found themselves in a bit of trouble lately. As the Eastern Conference powerhouse seemed well on their way to taking a fast trip to the Eastern Conference Finals, Brooklyn has dealt with their fair share of setbacks in the postseason.

Right after defeating the Boston Celtics 4-1 in the first round, the Nets tipped off their second-round series against the Milwaukee Bucks on June 5th. In a matter of 43 seconds, the Brooklyn Nets went from having an All-Star trio of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden to having an All-Star duo as Harden left with a hamstring injury.

Since exiting the Game 1 matchup against Milwaukee, Harden has missed the last three games. Without him, Brooklyn seemed fine for the first couple of outings. In Games 1 and 2, the Nets took care of business and got off to a 2-0 series lead.

In Game 3, Brooklyn and Milwaukee engaged in a sloppy matchup, which the Bucks came out on top victorious in. Although the Bucks picked up their first win of the series, Brooklyn was far from alarmed. 

However, following Game 4's events, panic could start to set in as the Nets not only lost the matchup on Sunday afternoon, but they lost another one of their stars as Kyrie Irving left the game with a sprained ankle.

According to ESPN's Malika Andrews, Irving's initial X-rays on his ankle came back negative, which is a good sign. However, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Rachel Nichols reported the star guard was seen using crutches on Sunday after the game, which raises more concern.

Will Iriving play in the next matchup? Nobody from the Nets' organization could say for sure. One thing that Brooklyn's head coach Steve Nash wanted to make clear after the game, though, was that he didn't want Irving's setback to dictate when Harden returns to Brooklyn's lineup.

"I don't want James to be rushed back," Nash said, according to Malika Andrews and Tim Bontemps of ESPN. "If he's able to play next game, or the game after, that's fantastic. If he's not, we don't want to rush him back and jeopardize doing something worse or making this a long-term injury."

While there have been reports that Harden is "progressing well" with his hamstring injury, there was never a guaranteed timeline for his return set in place. While Brooklyn could certainly use Harden right about now, it seems the Nets are unsure whether he'll be back in time or not for Game 5 -- and Irving's status won't change that.