The Brooklyn Nets look like the team to beat in the Eastern Conference, at least in the paper. They’ve put together a video game-like squad and arguably the greatest offensive trio in NBA history in Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and now James Harden.
There’s absolutely no doubt that these three guys can go off any given night and combine for 100+ points when needed. However, some analysts are concerned about their inability to get stops, considering that Irving makes them a smaller team, Harden isn’t a great defender, and they lack some depth behind DeAndre Jordan.
Those defensive flaws were in full display during their first game together. They gave up 20 points in just 5 minutes of overtime to the Cleveland Cavaliersand allowed them – which had the worst offense in the league entering that game – to score 147 points on them.
Kevin Durant Says He, Kyrie Irving, And James Harden ‘Belong Together’
Kevin Durant, however, is far from concerned with that result and what people have to say about them. If anything, he’s thrilled about having the chance to play with his friends, claiming that it feels right:
“It felt right. It felt perfect. It felt like we belong together,” Durant told the media, as quoted by Nick Friar of Yahoo Sports. “It felt like this journey together is going to be fun. Tough first start (…) it was an up and down game for us. But I like where we are.”
Durant left the Golden State Warriors to team up with Kyrie Irving and put together a superteam of his own, and so far, it’s paid off. Whether they’ll be able to carry that on into the playoffs or not – especially given Harden’s history and Irving’s character issues – is yet to be seen.
What is clear is that the Nets will have to address their bench and sign a couple of veterans if they want to have a chance to beat teams like the Sixers, Bucks, Lakers, or Clippers in a seven-game series.
