Brooklyn Nets to Playoffs?

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Kullen Christman discusses the Brooklyn Nets.

Jayden Safley, Reporter

How far can the Brooklyn Nets go in the NBA Playoffs? They’re the biggest hit or miss team in NBA history. They traded for James Harden this season, who is one of the best scorers of all time. However, the Nets gave up a lot of young talent that hurt their bench depth and lots of draft picks.

Lots of NBA fans questioned this team’s chemistry together since their big three in Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving are all ball dominant players. However, James Harden has stepped up big time for the Nets this season. Harden and Kyrie Irving have switched positions this season, and the Nets have Harden running point guard. They have been playing extremely well. Harden has been averaging 11 assists per game this season, and Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving are averaging over 27 points per game this season all while shooting the ball efficiently. 

With all of the offensive firepower that the Nets have, it may look like they’re the frontrunners to win the title. This season they have the best offensive rating of all time, however, the Brooklyn Nets also have the worst defensive rating of all time. These two stats really show the team’s strengths and weaknesses. 

Kullen Christman had some interesting takes on the Brooklyn Nets. He thinks that Kyrie Irving should stay at point guard because he claims that Kyrie is a better playmaker than James Harden. Christman says this while Harden is averaging 11 assists this season. Also, Christman has Kevin Durant taking the final shot nearing the end of the close games. He thinks this because he has Durant as a top two scorer of all time. Christman thinks that they should look to move Jeff Green and buy out Andre Drummond’s contract for more rebounding and paint defense, something that this team is looking for. He has the Nets finishing as a top seed in their conference and losing in the NBA finals to the Lakers in game seven.

Luke Sutherland predicts that the Brooklyn Nets will make it to the eastern conference finals, and possibly farther if they can keep their big three of Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving fresh and healthy for the playoffs. Sutherland also thinks that they should look for an upgrade at the center position to replace DeAndre Jordan’s starting position. He thinks that they need a better defender and rebounder than Jordan. Sutherland thinks that they work very well together, and that they have surprised a lot of people this season, especially James Harden in all aspects of his game. He projects them to have 45-55 wins by the end of the season, based on if the big three can stay healthy, or not.

Gage Sisco has a surprising opinion on the Nets. He thinks that they don’t need to make any trades and claims that they are already stacked despite their obvious defensive struggles. He also thinks that they are getting a good connection going, and likes how they work together. Sisco says that they aren’t the worst defensive team, but they clearly aren’t near the best defensive team in the league. He has them staying where they are a top three seed by the end of a year getting 50 plus wins by the end of the regular season. Sisco thinks that the finals is a toss up between the Lakers and the Nets.

Logan Hart has some respectable takes on the Brooklyn Nets. He has the Nets beating the Lakers in game six of the NBA finals to take home the championship. He says that they need to look for an upgrade at the center position, although he thinks that DeAndre Jordan hasn’t been doing too bad as of lately. He thinks that they work well together when there’s only two out of the three superstars on the floor because their big three is so ball dominant. Hart says that one of the main reasons why is because James Harden has been a great playmaker for them this season. Hart has Brooklyn ending the regular season as a top three seed as long as they can stay healthy.