The Nets expected to fight for the NBA title and maybe one day they will. But that day is not now and another shortened post-season appearance ended on Monday when the Boston Celtics beat them 116-112 to finish four games in their first-round playoff series.
It was a fitting season finale for the seventh-placed Nets, who spent months cycling through a colorful cast of characters. They were repealed by injuries and absences, by a mixed list that could not find a consistent brand of basketball, and finally by a superior opponent who put his suffocating brackets on two of the best players on the planet.
The Celtics have created the highest defense in the league in the regular season and proved that this is no coincidence against Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Name Udoka, the Celtics’ first coach, was one of the assistants to coach Steve Nash in Brooklyn last season, and he applied his institutional knowledge throughout the series.
Next for the second placed Celtics is the winner of the series of the first round between the Chicago Bulls and the Milwaukee Bucks. Defending champions Bucks have a three-to-one lead, entering game 5 of their series on Wednesday.
The Nets, who had the second highest salary in the league this season, will try to recalibrate. Ours, who was hired by the Nets in 2020 with no experience as a head coach, now leads two early departures after the season. (The Nets lost to Bucks in the Eastern Conference semifinals last season.) Irving, who could become an unlimited free agent, said he intends to re-sign with the team. But he appeared in only 29 games of the regular season this season due to his refusal to be vaccinated against coronavirus.
The season was also interrupted by an exchange in the middle of the season with the Philadelphia 76ers, who acquired James Harden in exchange for a package that included Ben Simmons, Seth Curry and a draft pick. Simmons arrived in Brooklyn with a sore back and said he had been dealing with mental health issues for months. He never appeared in uniform.
As for the Harden experiment, it was a failure. Harden, Durant and Irving have played together in just 16 games in two seasons, including the playoffs.
Before game 4 Nash thought about the turbulent season of the Nets and turned it forward, saying that he made the team “better” and “stronger”.
“We accepted the challenge and we all grew out of it,” he said. “And at some point, these challenges will allow us a lot. However, we hope that we will not have to face so many people in the future. “
Durant missed 21 games after spraining his knee in January, then played tough minutes at the end of the regular season as the team struggled for a place in the playoffs. After Durant tried only 11 flights against the Celtics in Game 3, Nash admitted that fatigue may have played a role.
“Kevin had to play more than 40 minutes for five weeks or more after missing six, seven weeks,” he said, adding: “I’m sure it took a lot of impact.”
And there were heavily advertised absences from the team. Simmons watched the first three games of the series from the bench in streetwear. Harden now plays in Philadelphia. And Joe Harris, one of the team’s top scorers, had a bone fracture removed from his left ankle in November. When his rehabilitation failed, he underwent another surgical procedure in March, ending his season.
Against the Celtics Nets missed the length of Harris in defense, along with his ability to stretch the floor as a threat of 3 points. As a result, the Celtics could be even more aggressive to stick multiple defenders on Durant when he touches the ball.
The series itself was a quick descent into futility. After Jason Tatum of the Celtics won Game 1 by beating, Irving used a few swear words to describe his interaction with fans sitting on the court in Boston. (The NBA later fined Irving $ 50,000 for obscene gestures.) After the Nets received blows in Game 2, Irving praised the Celtics’ youngster, telling reporters that “now is their time.” And after fighting in Game 3, Durant sounded confused at his post-match press conference. What could he do to keep the show alive? He had no immediate decisions.
“Maybe shoot more, maybe smarter,” he said slowly, monotonously. “Catch the ball closer to the edge. Play faster. Catch and shoot more. ”
Durant said he would try to “understand” it by studying more films before Game 4.
Now the Nets have all summer looking for answers.
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