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James Harden Says Kyrie Irving Looked 'Elite' in Practice With Nets

Brooklyn Nets superstar James Harden is excited to have Kyrie Irving back

Joey Linn

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Kyrie Irving recently had his first practice with the Brooklyn Nets since clearing health and safety protocols, and according to James Harden, he looked elite. When asked how Kyrie looked in practice, Harden said, "Like Kyrie. Elite. He's the same Kyrie, we're just happy to have him back. Now we gotta get him on the court and get this thing going."

It has been well documented, but Kyrie Irving has missed the entire season due to his vaccination status. While he had been eligible for certain road games as an unvaccinated player, the Brooklyn Nets decided to keep him sidelined until he could be a full participant. Due to injuries and other absences, the Nets recently changed their stance on this, allowing Kyrie to be a participant in the games he is eligible for.

Shortly after the Nets announced this decision, Kyrie entered the league's heath and safety protocols. Recently clearing protocols, Kyrie had his first practice back with the Nets, and Harden says he looked elite. Harden's comments game after Brooklyn's loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday.

With New York City's vaccine mandate seemingly going nowhere, Kyrie will likely remain eligible only for select road games this season. While this will obviously complicate Brooklyn's pursuit of an NBA championship, the team has determined it is better to have Kyrie for some games, rather than not having him at all.

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Joey Linn
JOEY LINN

Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined Sports Illustrated's FanNation to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams during his time in school. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts, combined with his excellence in the classroom, earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time across multiple platforms, primarily serving as a credentialed Clippers beat writer.

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