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James Harden Joins Sixers in Milwaukee for Bucks Matchup

The Philadelphia 76ers started the week off with a matchup against the Boston Celtics at home on Tuesday night. For the first time since their blockbuster trade

Justin Grasso

James Harden Joins Sixers in Milwaukee for Bucks Matchup
James Harden Joins Sixers in Milwaukee for Bucks Matchup /

The Philadelphia 76ers started the week off with a matchup against the Boston Celtics at home on Tuesday night. For the first time since their blockbuster trade with the Brooklyn Nets, the Sixers had James Harden on their bench for the matchup.

As expected, Harden didn't play, but he was the team's honorary bell ringer before Philadelphia announced the starting five.

The Sixers' first impression in front of Harden wasn't ideal. Against a red-hot Celtics team, the 76ers suffered a beatdown as they fell way short by losing 135-87.

On Wednesday, the Sixers hit the road and traveled to Milwaukee for their final game before taking a week-long break after All-Star weekend.

For Thursday's game, the Sixers will battle it out with the Milwaukee Bucks on the road. As we found out before the Sixers kicked off their slate of games earlier this week, the team won't have its new star James Harden on the floor.

Considering Harden's been battling a hamstring injury since before he was traded to the Sixers, Philadelphia's medical staff wants to take it easy with their ten-time All-Star.

However, just because Harden isn't playing for the Sixers on Thursday doesn't mean he'll stay away from the team for the time being.

Harden Makes the Trip

When the Sixers held a Thursday morning shootaround at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Harden was with his new teammates and participating in the shootaround activities.

Harden might not be able to play in games right now, but he's been able to get some work in with the Sixers over the last few days as he's participated in several practice sessions and now the shootaround on Thursday.

When will Harden return to make his Sixers debut? Sometime after the All-Star break. While nobody could reveal the target date for his return, it seems there is a realistic shot that Harden takes the floor with the Sixers for the first time next Friday when they take on the Minnesota Timberwolves on the road.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_. 

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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Title: Credentialed writer/reporter covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation Email: JustinGrasso32@Gmail.com Location: Philadelphia, PA Expertise: Reporting, insight, and analysis on the Sixers and the NBA  Justin Grasso is a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation.  Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writer’s Association.  Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoNBA

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