First Week Finals: Way too early picks for the NBA’s next Eastern Conference champ
2. Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets will be of interest in NBA circles no matter how high they climb the conference ladder. In a league where stars are known to make a difference, Brooklyn has two who are champions and a couple of the hardest shot-takers and -makers the NBA can offer. This is an invaluable trait to have in clutch time and with two players fully capable and expected to take the last shot when it counts; the Nets will make it hard for other teams to know who a play maybe run for, or stop Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving when that play, if there is one, breaks down. A young team just a couple of years ago, the Brooklyn Nets are now stocked with long and versatile veterans as well as similarly-styled players who have come up and developed over a number of years within the organization.
Spencer Dinwiddie’s injury is a significant blow to this team as he was a borderline All-Star last season and an important piece to the team at full strength, but more importantly, someone who could carry the load when Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant are having to manage theirs. The health of these players is another question mark as both are coming off major surgeries, although both also seem like they have not suffered any ill effects from them either. Their minutes and whether they play together like they have been early this season will be reexamined with Dinwiddie out for the year.
Some rust is expected and the NBA has shown time and time again that there’s usually a period of growth when superstars come together. The Big Three in Miami started 9-8 before losing to Dallas. Last season’s Clippers flamed out. The last Laker team featuring Kobe and Shaq, with Gary Payton and Karl Malone got waxed in the Finals. The lack of experience of the head coach, Steve Nash, and the coaching staff working collectively as a unit could also be an issue although rookie, ex-player coaches have had some degree of success in recent years. The Brooklyn Nets seem to have any early rapport between players and coaches though, and Kyrie Irving has even followed through in his espoused trust of Kevin Durant as a closing equal, passing the ball to KD for a chance to tie or win against the Charlotte Hornets that came up short in the third game of the year.
This was a good sign though, as are the multiple play-makers and ball-handlers on the Brooklyn Nets roster even in the absence of Dinwiddie. Although early, there were positive signs that roles were being sorted out before his injury. There are still a wealth of players who can score in double figures with even Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, who started as the 11th or 12th man off the bench, hitting 21 points in a game so far this season. Taurean Prince, Jeff Green and Deandre Jordan are a combined 20 points below their career averages because the Brooklyn Nets are so deep and versatile that they are now being asked to contribute more defensively or in different and reduced roles. Some of these players have even taken less to be a part of the Brooklyn Nets Experience, so chemistry issues may not be as tenuous as generally perceived, especially before the season started.
With an unknown, but potentially lethal mix of art and science on the offensive end, carried out by two of the NBA’s most proficient proponents in KD and Irving, the ultimate hopes of the Brooklyn Nets might come down to their commitment on defense and the teams’ collective ability to rebound the ball to seal the defensive possession. The Nets are currently 30th in rebounding percentage on that end and have been a bottom third team forcing turnovers for the previous three seasons, while also being in that bracket in turnover percentage offensively during the same period. The Brooklyn Nets need to minimize opportunities for their opponents off the boards and from their own carelessness, particularly in Dinwiddie’s absence, to maximize their superior offensive potential which is and will be their greatest strength.