Ever since James Harden arrived in Brooklyn, and even before that, the Nets have not run away from their championship aspirations.
But Harden has seen them clearly recently.
“We are more than confident that it will be difficult for a team to beat us four times in a series of the best of seven,” Harden told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols. ‘I’m excited about it and it’s just a month ago. All of us are trying to achieve one goal and that is an NBA championship. ”
Saturday’s game against the Warriors will mean Harden’s 14th game with the Nets, but only his seventh with both Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving on the floor. The Nets are 4-2 if their Big 3 fit together.
The Nets will be without center DeAndre Jordan on Saturday as he has a personal problem. Coach Steve Nash said the Nets of Jordan expect to rejoin them during their five-day road trip and meanwhile continue testing for COVID-19, which will allow him to play immediately once he is ready.
Jeff Green is likely to move into midfield position – a role he has played regularly this season – especially with the missing center James Wiseman (wrist) of the Warriors.
“Let’s hope it’s not the kiss of death, but actually the Warriors game is a team that is playing very small at the moment with all their true centers outside,” Nash said. “So I do not want to say that it is coincidental, because they are such a difficult team to defend anyway, but it would have been a difficult match for a traditional center anyway.”
The Nets also have the new centers Norvel Pelle and Noah Vonleh.
Some players talked about the mental strain that has increased on them this season, with COVID-19 protocols not making much more possible than going to the arena for games or the team facility for training. Durant has a different perspective.
“I mean [shoot], it’s not that bad, ”he said. “We are paid millions of dollars to do something we love every day. We’ll find out the rest. ”
These protocols also make team-building opportunities, especially on a Western trip like the Nets, more difficult in the traditional sense.
“In the good old days, I would have put my credit card behind the bar and told the guys to go out and have a good time,” Nash said. “But that’s not happening for a while in COVID, so we’ll have to find creative ways to keep growing and find that bond.”
Nic Claxton (tendinopathy on the right knee) will travel with the Nets and is expected to eventually start working with their ‘stay-ready’ group.