James Harden back from injury after missing 20 games; Nets blow out Spurs

NEW YORK — James Harden is back.

Harden finally returned against the Spurs on Wednesday night after missing 20 of the Nets’ previous 21 games with a nagging right hamstring strain. He came off the bench and posted 18 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds in Brooklyn’s wire-to-wire 128-116 victory over San Antonio.

“This was the longest I’ve ever been out in my career,” Harden said postgame. “It was frustrating. I love to compete and be out there for my teammates.”

The Barclays Center crowd met Harden with applause, and he kept Nets fans on their toes for each of the 26 minutes he spent on the floor. His best highlight came in the third quarter, when he shifted Spurs rookie Devin Vassell with a crossover, then stepped back for a 3-pointer, plus the foul from Vassell’s contest.

Harden then did a mini-shimmy as a celebratory dance.

The Nets and their fans all have reasons to dance and celebrate: Harden’s return, so long as Brooklyn’s Big 3 can stay healthy, cements the Nets as the Eastern Conference powerhouse they’ve been all season. Kyrie Irving (facial contusion) did not play after taking an elbow to the face against Tuesday in Chicago, but Nets head coach Steve Nash said Irving is “clear to play” in the Nets’ final two games of the regular season: a back-to-back featuring the Bulls on Saturday and a regular-season finale against the Cavaliers on Sunday.

Harden’s return should help the team close strong, though it’s unclear (and unlikely) if he'll play in both games of the back-to-back. If the Nets come out as sharp against the Cavaliers as they did against the Spurs, Brooklyn shouldn’t need him.

Harden didn’t enter the game until the 8:06 mark of the second quarter. Nash’s return rollout for his star point guard mirrored the approach he took with Durant, who returned at the 7:37 mark of the second quarter in his first game back against the Pelicans on April 7.

The Nets, though, built Harden a cushion like they built for Durant, who entered the game with a nine-point lead against the Pelicans. By the time Harden entered against the Spurs on Wednesday, the Nets had already taken a 15-point lead into the second quarter.

“I like that sixth man role, coming off the bench,” Harden said. “Kind of reminds me of being (the Sixth Man) in Oklahoma City.”

That lead, however, evaporated early into the second quarter. The Nets second unit shot just 1 of 8 from the field to start the period, while the Spurs got hot to make it just a 41-40 Brooklyn lead. Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot’s cold shooting continued with an 0-for-4 night in his seven minutes off the bench. Tyler Johnson also saw his first playing time since the May 2 loss in Milwaukee, but he missed both of his 3-point attempts and finished with two points in 19 minutes.

The Nets' starting unit took control, however, after the Spurs made it a one-point game. Blake Griffin dunked on Spurs big man Jakob Poeltl, which prompted a wave of other Nets trying to dunk it on any player not wearing a tie-dye jersey. Mike James, who started in place of Irving, had a transition dunk blocked at the rim, and Jeff Green attempted to dunk on Spurs players on three out of four consecutive possessions. Reserve forward Nic Claxton also left his mark on the rim, coming off the bench for 18 points and five rebounds on only one missed shot.

Durant finished with 14 points and missed all four of his 3-point attempts. It was an off night for Brooklyn’s superstar forward, who made strides simply by playing in the second game of a back-to-back on Wednesday after logging 32 minutes in a lowkey, but dominant performance against the Bulls the night before.

Landry Shamet led the Nets in scoring with 21 points and hit five 3s as the lead sharpshooter with Joe Harris sitting out with hip soreness.

This is the James Harden effect, and it’s part of the reason why the Nets weren’t so down after losing four in a row to elite NBA competition last week. Harden makes players around him better and directs the offense with an efficiency that led to Irving surrendering the point guard position.

Brooklyn’s full-time floor general is back on the floor. The Nets are now 28-7 in games Harden has played and will look to make it an even 30 in their final games of the season.

“I think these next few games are key, and then the next few days before it gets real,” he said.