Brooklyn Nets Take 2-0 Lead to Boston

From the desk: THE HOOPS OF FLATBUSH

NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION

PLAYOFFS: ROUND ONE

Nets lead Celtics; 2-0

I - BKN 104; BOS 93

II - BKN 130; BOS 108

GAME THREE
Brooklyn Nets

vs.

Boston Celtics

FROM

Causeway Street Gym

It's The Joe Harris Show 

That's six straight quarters that more closely resemble what most of us had in mind.  I suppose the first two quarters of Game One were just a warm-up.

I find it fascinating that 29 different players touched the ball Tuesday night, and not one of them was named DeAndre Jordan.  Otherwise, the Nets starting five outscored Boston's starting five, 97-76, a margin of 21 points.  The flip side of that is Brooklyn's bench only outscored the Celtics bench by one point.

No Celtic achieved 20 points; Marcus Smart came close with a team-high 19 points and six assists in a likewise team-high 32 minutes.  On the other hand, Flatbush had three players post at least 20 points: Kevin Durant led the team with 26 points and tied with Bruce Brown on a team-high eight rebounds.  James Harden came in at 20 points and a game-high seven assists. 

And look who led the game in shot attempts!  Mister Joe Harris was 9/14 from the field, including a Nets playoff record 7/10 from behind the arc for 25 points to go along with a team-high plus-25 in 29 minutes. Flatbush wins by 22 points, and Harris is essentially the difference.

Then there is Kyrie Irving, who, except for 15 points, puts in a near-identical performance as James Harden, with six rebounds and six assists and a plus-19 in 28 minutes.  Perhaps in this game, he and James Harden were simply following Joe Harris' lead.  Otherwise, the more divergent Harden's assist totals and Kyrie's point totals become, the more it facilitates Nets' success.  And even though he previously played in Boston since leaving the Celtics, the crowd will most likely treat this like it was his first time back because that's what fans do.

Blake Griffin scored 11 points in 20 minutes, and Landry Shamet led the bench effort with ten points in 25 minutes.

The Nets were plus-three in rebounding and plus-eight in assists.

On to Boston ...