Brooklyn Nets: Pre-Season Test Run Goes Smoothly

From the desk: THE HOOPS OF FLATBUSH

THE LAB

PRE-SEASON

• NETS 119; Wizards 114
• Nets 113; CELTICS 89

I can't remember the first or last time I had such fun watching pre-season games!

It's been eighteen months, well over 500 days, since Sean Marks signed Kevin Durant.  Nets fans waited excitedly but patiently throughout until Dec. 13, when KD and Kyrie Irving finally played together as members of the Brooklyn Nets.  Their respective first-half effort against Washington was an eye-popping glimpse into what could possibly be a fascinating season in Flatbush.  In turning away the Wizards during last Sunday's opener at Barclays Center, the team's oft-debated team synergy was a complete non-issue.  The two joined for 33 points en route to a 68-50 first-half lead.  Said another way, they accounted for 48.5% of the Nets first-half scoring.  I don't like math, but I'm completely copacetic with that measure of contribution as water ultimately seeks its own level.

On Friday, the Brooks rolled to their second victory this time over (last year's playoff-contending) Celtics by a commanding 24-point margin.  Naturally, both Durant's and Irving's minutes increased.  So far, through two games and 51 total minutes for Durant and 45-minutes for Irving, they've been nothing short of impressive.  Durant, in particular, appears completely recovered from surgery and rehabilitation.  He's shown no signs of hesitancy.  In fact, his first step appears explosive as ever.  Durant scored a floor high 25 points in 27 minutes, with six defensive boards.  Drawing attention and fouls, he was 5 of 6 from the line and put up a team-high sixteen attempts.  Irving put up the second-most attempts, shooting 7 of 15 from the field for 17 points with no trips to the line.  He otherwise tied for a game-high five assists and was second on the team in rebounding with seven.  Together Durant and Irving accounted for 37.1% of Brooklyn's total points.  As I said, water will find its own level.  These numbers are due to change once the regular season commences this coming Tuesday.

Unable to participate against the Wizards (knee), Caris LeVert joined in with 18 points in 21 minutes off the bench.  He was 6 of 13 from the floor, including 2 of 3 from the arc and a perfect 4 of 4 from the line.  With LeVert back in the fold, both Tyler Johnson's and Timothe Luwawu-Cabbarot's minutes dropped by half.

After missing a pair of three-point attempts against Washington, happy-to-be-back Joe Harris connected on 4 of 7 from the arc against Boston.

Getting consistent minutes under close inspection were Taurean Prince and Landry Shamet.  In 42 minutes, Prince was 5 of 11 (55%) from the floor with five boards, and Shamet in 39 minutes was 4 of 12 (33%) with just one assist but six rebounds.

Meanwhile, DeAndre Jordan and Jarrett Allen remain at the center of my attention.  Against Washington, in splitting 32 minutes, the two joined for only seven points with eleven defensive boards.  Coach Nash started Jordan for a second straight game.  DeAndre against Boston made no attempts from the field and was 1 of 2 from the line.  However, he did tie with a team-high five assists with four rebounds, three steals, and two blocked shots in 19-minutes.  In 17-minutes off the bench, an aggressive Jarrett Allen was 5 of 6 from the line with nine points overall.  He secured a game-high eleven boards and was a +20 for the game.

Now the fun really starts.  Brooklyn's regular-season commences this coming Tuesday night against the Golden State Warriors at the Flatbush Avenue Gym.  Ironic that Tuesday's opener is against the team for which Kevin Durant last played an NBA game.  He tore his Achillies mid-June 2019 during Game 5 of the NBA Finals.  By month's end, the free agent agreed to sign with the Nets.

Flatbush was a playoff team last season minus Kyrie Irving's services, who played just twenty games.  After appearing in the team's first eleven games, he missed the next two months from mid-November through mid-January.  Kyrie returned to play nine more games.  However, Feb. 2, at Washington would be his last of the season.  He would ultimately undergo surgery to relieve a right shoulder impingement.  Through two pre-seasons games, like Kevin Durant, Irving's performance appeared free and unrestricted.  He's also made peace with the media after referring to them as pawns - a matter, however, that doesn't interest me much.  All that matters to me is his ability to stay on the floor.

From the outside looking in, this team can appear cliquish to the casual observer.  I do not believe so.  But that's going to be Steve Nash's responsibility to discern.  For you have Nash, Mike D'Antoni, and Amare Stoudemire, who all have a long relationship together.  You have assistant coach Jacque Vaughn and the Flatbush cultivated crew of Caris LeVert, Jarrett Allen, Joe Harris, Spencer Dinwiddie, and even Rodions Kurucs.  Lastly, you have the incoming triumvirate of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and DeAndre Jordan, who together agreed to join forces.  I'm looking forward to an agreeable melding of minds between Nash, Durant, and Irving.  However, I'm also curious to see who is trying to be the alpha personality on any given day.

I trust that Sean Marks thought all this through ...

#NoHarden