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First, the caveat. There’s nothing special to glean about a regular season win in January, let alone one against a mediocre, shorthanded opponent on the second night of a second leg. That being said, the Nets did what they were supposed to do in James Harden’s debut, sending the Magic 122-115 on Saturday. Harden recorded a triple-double in his first outing with Brooklyn, registering 32 points, 12 rebounds and 14 assists. The 14 assists were a franchise record in one game (albeit with nine turnovers).
Of course, all of that might not matter on Sunday, when Kyrie Irving is expected to return to the floor. For now, here are three thoughts on the premiere of Harden’s Nets.
Wendell Cruz / USA TODAY Sports
Harden doesn’t need an Iso ball
It’s probably fair to wonder what Harden’s numbers would look like over a full season without playing the iso-heavy style that has become his hallmark in Houston. Well, he got even better numbers than his usual averages on his first go-around with Brooklyn. Obviously, Harden will still have the ball in his hands, even when Kyrie eventually returns. Saturday was at least remarkable in the way the Brooklyn attack kept the momentum going instead of stopping and looking at Harden. For example, this possession that didn’t even end in a score:
Watch how Joe Harris’ move means Orlando defenders have to keep moving their eyes between him and the Harden-Durant two-man game. Now imagine that one of these defenders is also dealing with Irving. There will be plenty of opportunities for Irving, Durant or Harden to take advantage of defenses that basically cannot commit more than one player to one of the stars. (Not to mention, which team has three guys to take on Irving, Durant, and Harden in the first place?)
There will be a lot of pick-and-rolls between a combination of the star trio. There will also be many isolations when one of them has excessive lag. And Harden has yet to prove he can engage in offside actions when the time comes. But it’s promising from the start that the Nets avoided plenty of ball possessions on Saturday.
Joe Harris adds fuel to the fire
We touched on Harris a bit above, but he really deserves his own mention. The Nets’ most Brooklyn-like player scored 17 points on Saturday, connecting on four of his nine lines. The Nets don’t have a ton of depth outside of their top three, but Harris is absolutely going to have a blast playing alongside so many talent. He scored the first basket of the game on a assist from DeAndre Jordan, which served as a reminder for what happens when teams are so focused on the big hitters. There will be games in which Harris completely outclasses one of Durant, Irving and Harden because of the number of open looks he gets. Here is another clip from my guy Mo Dakhil:
It’s not even a wide open look for Harris! But Harden slams the defense without even needing an opening pick. Durant keeps the ground extended. And Harris can just hide around the arch for the best look while the opponent is jostling each other. Defenses will go crazy defending for a full shot timer. Now prepare for plenty of late possessions and three grueling Harris threesomes.
Depth and defense watch
These are Brooklyn’s two “problems” as the season progresses. Can the Nets survive with such a list up front? And will the defense, which was already elusive, stand up to elite opponents? The first feedback is mixed.
Orlando really wasn’t able to keep this game close, but somehow it was a two-point game around three minutes to go into the fourth. The Nets will have plenty of time to train between now and the playoffs, and figuring out how to get saves has to be the top priority. Durant is the only perimeter stopper in a line-up from Irving, Harden, Harris, KD and Jordan. The Nets will likely host shootouts almost every night, but it’s worth keeping an eye on the year.
As for the actors, nobody really flashed in the first game. Jeff Green had 10 points in 30 minutes, while the bench had 19 points. Again, Irving will help. But it was fun to watch Durant and Harden each play 40 minutes when Steve Nash said ahead of the game that he would like to control their minutes. That said, Bruce Brown struck a dagger three in the waning moments of the fourth to officially Ice the Magic. As long as the Nets get a timely bucket here or there of the supporting cast, that should be enough given the oomph the headliners will bring.
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