James Harden receives injury report against Grizzlies
The Los Angeles Clippers will face the Memphis Grizzlies, but could be without their star player in the game. James Harden spoke on the injury report with a contusion of the left lower leg, and he is listed as suspicious. Calf injuries have been a problem in the league this season, with players needing weeks to recover from them. Anthony Davis was recently listed on the injury report for the same thing.
Evan Mobley also just suffered a calf strain and is expected to miss the next two to four weeks for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
When you look at the data, calf injuries have made a big leap from last season to 20 games, according to Tom Haberstroh Yahoo Sports.
“This time last season there were 18 lower leg injuries at the 20-game mark. This season it’s up to 25 incidents, a nearly 40% increase,” Haberstroh wrote. “More significant, however, is the extended recovery time frame from these injuries. According to Stotts, the number of games lost due to shin injuries through 20 games has skyrocketed from 36 to 108. Triple the total from last season.”
Every calf injury isn’t the same for every player, so it’s uncertain how serious Harden is. Given that he’s listed as questionable, that could be a sign that it’s something minor, but that really won’t be known until closer to game time.
If Harden can’t play, it will be just one more hurdle the Clippers will have to deal with, having dealt with injuries all season. Bradley Beal is out for the rest of the season, Derrick Jones Jr. is on the mend from an MCL injury, and Kawhi Leonard was sidelined earlier this year but has played consistently of late.
The Clippers also just haven’t played well this season, even when healthy. It’s been a tough year, but Harden has been the one constant through it all. The hope is that he won’t be back as long as he should be, but that’s if the injury is really serious.
2025-12-15 15:21:00
