March 29, 2024

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Kevin Durant’s eventual return will bring Nets rotation conundrum

Put to rest any conspiracy theories that LaMarcus Aldridge and Blake Griffin joined the Nets as insurance since Kevin Durant’s prognosis is bleak.

At minimum for now. They won’t be completely extinguished right until Durant techniques back on the flooring, which is not occurring this week.

Anytime Durant returns from a remaining hamstring pressure and performs his way again to his regular 36 minutes for each video game, the Nets will have a front-courtroom logjam that simply just doesn’t depart sufficient minutes divided up at the electricity ahead and middle positions to appease previous All-Stars Griffin, Aldridge and DeAndre Jordan, moreover veteran starter Jeff Inexperienced, without the need of some key ego checks.

“That’s some thing that I simply cannot predict,” coach Steve Nash mentioned of his rotations. “We’ll see how it all suits jointly and it’ll current by itself. But appropriate now I just cannot predict how that is going to be without the need of it currently being any far more than a prediction. But we have lots of depth, heaps of selections, and we’re excited about it.”

Durant performed 4-on-four with his teammates at Sunday’s apply, but the games-skipped counter is envisioned to increase from 18 to at least 21, beginning Monday versus the Timberwolves.

Nets
Kevin Durant
Charles Wenzelberg/New York Article

“He seems to be excellent and is progressing,” Nash reported, “but continue to wants to be monitored and however have to have to get a selected sum of markers underneath his belt right before we could put him in the frame once more. Will certainly be back with us. It is just, I do not imagine this 7 days is probably.”

Aldridge, whose contract was purchased out by the Spurs, reportedly picked the Nets more than the Heat. It echoes what occurred a few weeks ago when Griffin was bought out by the Pistons and joined the Nets.

It also signals that gamers close to the league who never ever received a championship watch the Nets as their greatest chance to win just one, like when Gary Payton and Karl Malone hopped on board the Kobe Bryant-Shaquille O’Neal-led Lakers in 2003-04. That is a large amount of stress to embrace.

“Our objective is to gain a championship,” ahead Bruce Brown claimed. “We try for that just about every working day. We put together for that each individual day, and that’s the final purpose. We assume we can do that this 12 months.”

Brown could be buried at the back of the bench when Nets are at whole toughness, but Nic Claxon — who is in the center of the finest stretch of his two-year profession — almost certainly is most susceptible.

“Honestly, the extra the merrier,” Claxton mentioned. “The extra players we get, the deeper we are, the far better we will be. It’s going to be a whole lot of entertaining. Coaches have a ton of distinctive instruments and different guys they can set in, and distinct selections to make. I’m a more youthful man on the workforce, so I can study from these guys, for positive.”

The likelihood of possessing much too many superior players and not sufficient minutes is a loaded trouble for Nash. 1 solution could be to use Durant at tiny forward in a major lineup, when Joe Harris isn’t on the flooring.

“First of all, one thing arrives up every 7 days this time,” Nash claimed. “Your alternatives constantly seem to be outstanding, and then very swiftly they are confined. We’ll change and adapt as we go and do the greatest we can to place the team in the greatest posture to win and to increase. What does that imply? I do not know. But it’ll declare alone as we carry on and as we offer with all the different items that will be thrown at us the rest of the way.”

The Nets are 16-3 in their earlier 19 online games even with a better-than-predicted reliance on the likes of Claxton, Brown, Landry Shamet and Tyler Johnson. Just this 7 days, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot’s actively playing time spiked and Alize Johnson performed 33 minutes new out of the G-League.

Griffin was meant to be a part participant but was essential for 17 factors and three rebounds in Friday’s acquire from the Pistons. Durant in the beginning was envisioned back in 1 or two months. He hasn’t performed due to the fact Feb. 13.

“I may possibly participate in 30 a person night, I may possibly engage in five a single night,” Brown claimed. “When Kev will come again … there is going to be minutes taken from any person, but we’re all likely to be content for everyone who is out there on the floor participating in nicely. We really do not treatment.”