Nets Notes: Irving, Harden, Durant, Green, More
Although he’s not ruling out the possibility that Nets guard Kyrie Irving will be available for Game 5 vs. the Bucks, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (video link) suggested during a KJZ appearance on Monday morning that the team is bracing for Irving to miss at least that game, if not more, after spraining his ankle on Sunday.
With Irving and James Harden (hamstring) both potentially sidelined, the alarm bells are blaring for the Nets, who now find themselves in a 2-2 tie with Milwaukee, writes Mike Vaccaro of The New York Post. As Vaccaro notes, even if Irving and Harden are able to play again in this series, there’s no guarantee they’d be 100%, and ankle and hamstring injuries are easy to tweak.
Here’s more on the Nets:
- If Irving and Harden are out, Kevin Durant will bear the burden of trying to carry the Nets into the next round, as Ian O’Connor of The New York Post and Joe Vardon of The Athletic write in separate stories. Vardon compares the situation to LeBron James having to shoulder the load for the 2015 Cavaliers after Irving and Kevin Love went down with injuries.
- The Nets at least got some good injury news prior to Game 4 on Sunday when forward Jeff Green was cleared to return. However, head coach Steve Nash admitted after the game that he ended up having to play Green more than he anticipated — and more than he would’ve liked. “I think (with) Kyrie going down, we used his versatility to try different things,” Nash said of Green, per Marc Berman of The New York Post. “I’m proud of him for playing. He wasn’t supposed to play today — a couple days ago. For him to ratchet it up and get out there was great.”
- In a span of days, the Nets went from overwhelming title favorites to being in real danger of elimination in the second round, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN, who says that Brooklyn is the latest club to “ram home” the point that winning a title in the NBA is extremely difficult.
- The Nets and Bucks had differing views on P.J. Tucker‘s defense on Durant after Game 4, as Eric Nehm of The Athletic writes. Nash referred to Tucker’s approach as “borderline non-basketball physical at times,” prompting Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer to respond, “He’s just guarding him. If that’s not basketball, I don’t know what is.”
Eastern Notes: Harris, Irving, Harden, Bucks, Martin
Sixers forward Tobias Harris has become a reliable secondary option on offense for the franchise, Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Times writes.
Harris, a respected leader in the team’s locker room, is averaging 23.6 points, 9.3 rebounds and 34.6 minutes per game during the playoffs. He’s shot 54% from the floor during those contests, trailing only Joel Embiid in points per game.
“I would list him right now as one of my favorite teammates ever,” teammate George Hill said. “He has a great sense of awareness of how things are going. He’s very open-minded, he listens (and is) just a great guy to be around. I think he’s a big leader for us and we’re going to continue to lean on him as we go through this journey.”
Here are some other notes from the Eastern Conference:
- The Nets won’t allow Kyrie Irving‘s ankle sprain to impact James Harden‘s return from a hamstring injury, head coach Steve Nash said, as relayed by Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). Harden missed most of Game 1 and hasn’t played since, with Brooklyn now missing two of its top three players due to injuries. “I think it’s an independent case. I don’t want James to be rushed back,” Nash said. “If he’s able to play next game and the game after, that’s fantastic.” As of Sunday night, no return timeline has been issued for either player.
- Eric Nehm of The Athletic examined how the Bucks can improve their offense prior to Game 4 on Sunday. Milwaukee bounced back with a much better offensive effort in the contest, winning 107-96 while shooting 44% from the floor. The team also recorded 27 assists in the outing.
- Brendan Rourke of Pacers.com reviews the season from Kelan Martin, who appeared in a total of 35 games. The 25-year-old Martin joined the Pacers last November after playing 31 games with the Timberwolves in 2019/20.
Kyrie Irving Suffers Right Ankle Sprain
4:57pm: The X-rays on Irving’s ankle came back negative, head coach Steve Nash said, as relayed by ESPN’s Malika Andrews (Twitter link). He will undergo further treatment and testing for the injury. Rachel Nichols of ESPN reported that Irving left the arena in a walking boot and crutches.
3:53pm: Nets All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving severely rolled his right ankle when he landed on the foot of Bucks All-Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo during a floater attempt during the second quarter of Game 4 of their second-round series on Sunday.
Malika Andrews of ESPN tweets that Irving will miss the second half of a crucial contest in Milwaukee. The Nets lead the series 2-1, as of this writing.
Irving joins fellow All-Star ball handler James Harden among the growing list of injured Nets as these playoffs continue. Harden remains sidelined with a right hamstring strain that kept him out of 18 games during the regular season and has kept him out of all but 43 seconds of this Bucks series.
The recovery timelines for Irving and Harden are currently murky, though Nets head coach Steve Nash said ahead of today’s game that Harden was “progressing in the right direction,” per Malika Andrews of ESPN. Nash stated that Harden has moved on to on-court workouts and shooting drills.
“When he’s able to get up to full speed and do it for two or three days without recurrence or setback … then I think that’s kind of the marker,” he said of establishing a recovery timeline.
Reserve point guard Mike James started in the place of Irving during the game’s second half. Another second-half starting adjustment came from head coach Steve Nash in the form of forward Jeff Green getting the nod ahead of shooting guard Bruce Brown, to provide more two-way firepower around incumbent starters Joe Harris (now the nominal starting shooting guard) and Blake Griffin (center), plus lone remaining healthy Nets All-Star Kevin Durant.
Rachel Nichols of ESPN tweets that Nash suggested to his team during the halftime break that the club would need to compensate for Irving’s scoring “by committee.”
Eastern Notes: Irving, Celtics, Bucks, Cavaliers
After having to address a series of fan-related incidents at games last week, the NBA is dealing with another one to start this week. As the Nets were leaving the TD Garden court on Sunday following a win over the Celtics, a fan threw a water bottle at Brooklyn guard Kyrie Irving.
A TD Garden spokesperson announced late last night that the individual who threw the water bottle was arrested and is subject to a lifetime ban from the arena (link via Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe). The 21-year-old male is facing charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and will be arraigned on Tuesday, according to Boston PD (Twitter link via Shams Charania of The Athletic).
The bottle missed hitting Irving, who had spoken prior to Game 3 about hoping that fans would keep heckling and jeering “strictly basketball” in his return to Boston.
“You can see that people just feel very entitled out here,” Irving said after Game 4, per Malika Andrews and Tim Bontemps of ESPN. “They paid for their tickets — great, I’m grateful that they’re coming in to watch a great performance. But we’re not at the theater. We’re not throwing tomatoes and other random stuff at the people that are performing.”
The water bottle toss was the latest in a series of incidents involving fans. Fans in Philadelphia and New York received indefinite arena bans last week for dumping popcorn on Russell Westbrook and spitting on Trae Young, respectively. Ja Morant‘s father also said that he and his wife had racist, vulgar comments directed toward them in Utah, as Andrews and Bontemps note.
“I know that being in the house for a year and a half with the pandemic got a lot of people on edge, got a lot of people stressed out, but when you come to these games, you have to realize these men are human,” Kevin Durant said on Sunday. “We are not animals; we are not in the circus. You coming to the game is not all about you as a fan. So, have some respect for the game. Have some respect for the human beings, and have some respect for yourself. Your mother wouldn’t be proud of you throwing water bottles at basketball players or spitting on players or tossing popcorn.”
Here’s more from around the East:
- The Celtics played without Kemba Walker (left knee bone bruise) and Robert Williams (turf toe, sprained left ankle) during Sunday’s loss, as Tim Bontemps of ESPN writes, and it’s not clear whether one or both players will be available for the team’s win-or-game-home Game 5 on Tuesday.
- The transformation the Bucks‘ roster underwent during the 2020 offseason paid off in the first round of the 2021 postseason, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. The team – which added Jrue Holiday, Bobby Portis, and Bryn Forbes last fall – figures to face a tougher test in round two, with a potential matchup vs. Brooklyn on tap.
- Jason Lloyd of The Athletic pushes back against GM Koby Altman‘s assertion that the Cavaliers had no young talent or draft assets in place when the team’s rebuild began in 2018 following LeBron James‘ departure. As Lloyd observes, rather than going all-in during LeBron’s final years in Cleveland, as they did during his first stint with the franchise, the Cavs had already traded Kyrie Irving for a lottery pick and had swapped out some veterans for younger players like Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance.
Nets Notes: Irving, Supporting Cast, Green, Harris
Friday’s loss showed that the Nets need contributions from their entire Big Three to be effective, writes Steve Serby of The New York Post. Making his return to Boston, Kyrie Irving shot 6 for 17 from the field and handed out just two assists in 41 minutes as Brooklyn suffered its first playoff loss with the star-filled lineup.
Boston fans have been waiting a long time to vent their anger at Irving, who left in free agency in 2019 after indicating that he planned to sign a long-term deal with the Celtics. He expressed negative comments about his time in Boston to the media this week, so it’s possible he was distracted by the experience during Game 3.
“I don’t want to necessarily make any conclusions that it was because of all the other chatter and the fans and all that,” coach Steve Nash said. “That’s a question for Ky. We know how good he is, we know that he can handle that environment, and we know that he can play much better in Game 4.”
There’s more on the Nets:
- Brooklyn’s supporting cast also came up short in Game 3, notes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. Kevin Durant, James Harden and Irving combined for 96 of the Nets’ 119 points, and the team had only 16 assists on 38 made shots. “I thought for big portions we got a little stagnant,” Nash said. “We got away from our movement. I thought James was scoring in isolation, Kevin was scoring in isolation, but I still think that we can be more difficult to guard in general if we move the ball and get to isolations as a second resort.”
- Some of the spacing issues were caused by the absence of Jeff Green, who may miss the rest of the series with a foot injury, states Chris Milholen of NetsDaily. With one less shooter on the court, the Celtics were more willing to double team Durant and throw traps at Irving.
- Joe Harris talks to Mike Mazzeo of Forbes about how he was able to resurrect his NBA career after being traded by the Cavaliers and waived by the Magic following season-ending foot surgery in 2016.
Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Rose, Simmons, Kyrie, Tatum
The Knicks evened their first-round series at one game apiece with a win over Atlanta on Wednesday night. And, as Ian Begley of SNY.tv writes, two midseason acquisitions whom head coach Tom Thibodeau pushed to add played key roles in that victory. Derrick Rose scored a team-high 26 points in 39 minutes off the bench, while Taj Gibson was a game-best plus-23 in his 30 minutes.
Rose, who was acquired via trade, and Gibson, a free agent signing, both played for Thibodeau in Chicago and Minnesota before reuniting with him in New York. As Begley observes, they’re the veterans Thibodeau trusts the most, and the Knicks’ head coach didn’t sound surprised that giving them big minutes helped turn the tide in Game 2.
“I just wanted to change it up,” Thibodeau said of putting Rose and Gibson in the Knicks’ lineup to start the third quarter. “I thought we had to do something different and that’s why you have a bench. Those guys came in and played great.”
Here’s more from around the Atlantic:
- Although Elfrid Payton technically started Wednesday’s game, it’s clear that Rose will be the point guard the Knicks rely on in this series, writes Paul Schwartz of The New York Post. Rose said he felt good after logging 39 minutes, while Payton was a minus-7 in his five minutes and didn’t play after the first quarter.
- After receiving some criticism in Philadelphia for putting up just six points (to go along with 15 rebounds and 15 assists) in the Sixers‘ Game 1 win, Ben Simmons scored 22 points on Wednesday and addressed that negative feedback after the game. “I’m not trying to stick to anybody in Philly,” Simmons said, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN. “I thought it was pretty hard to get 15 assists and 15 rebounds in the NBA in the playoffs. I thought that was pretty impressive. And we won. What y’all want? You want to win? For me, I’m here to win and I’m doing what I need to do to help my team win, whatever it is. I’m not trying to prove anybody wrong or anything like that. I’m trying to do my job to win.”
- As the Celtics/Nets series shifts from Brooklyn to Boston, former Celtic Kyrie Irving said he expects to hear plenty of jeers from the crowd, but hopes that C’s fans “keep it strictly basketball,” per Brian Lewis of The New York Post. “(Hopefully) there’s no belligerence or racism going on — subtle racism — people yelling s–t from the crowd, but even if it is, it’s part of the nature of the game and we’re just going to focus on what we can control,” Irving said.
- During an appearance on Zolak & Bertrand on 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston (audio link), Celtics head coach Brad Stevens said he thinks there’s a good chance Jayson Tatum will play in Game 3 after suffering an eye injury on Tuesday. “The last I heard was that he was doing better and that Friday looks probable,” Stevens said.
Celtics Notes: Fournier, R. Williams, Thompson, Irving
The Celtics were expecting to use Evan Fournier in a sixth-man role for the playoffs, but an injury to Jaylen Brown changed those plans, writes Souichi Terada of MassLive. With Brown unavailable after having surgery for a torn wrist ligament, Fournier will be part of the starting lineup in the first-round series against the Nets.
Acquired from the Magic at the trade deadline, Fournier has been productive since returning from the league’s health and safety protocols. In 16 games with the Celtics, he is averaging 13.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per night and shooting a sizzling 46.3% from three-point range. Fournier’s time in Orlando gave him some experience in approaching the playoffs as a low-seeded team.
“There’s no secret,” he said. “Being the lowest seed playing against the No. 1 or second seed, you just have to compete against them. When you play the best teams in the NBA, you have to compete. You have to show them that everything they’re going to get is hard.”
There’s more on the Celtics:
- Center Robert Williams is available to play tonight, tweets Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Williams had to leave Tuesday’s play-in game against the Wizards because of turf toe and sat out Friday’s practice.
- Due to Williams’ unpredictable status, the Celtics will have to rely more heavily on veteran big man Tristan Thompson, notes Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald. Boston signed Thompson as a free agent during the offseason to add a veteran with plenty of playoff experience to its front court. “I think that his role probably looms large regardless,” coach Brad Stevens said.
- The matchup with the Nets will give Boston fans plenty of opportunity to vent their anger at Kyrie Irving, the former Celtic who told season ticket holders in 2018 that he was planning to re-sign with the team, Murphy adds in a separate story. President of basketball operations Danny Ainge believes Irving was sincere at the time and speculated that changing circumstances prompted him to reconsider his pledge. “No grudges, no second-guessing,” Ainge said. “I just wish him well. He was a player that came through this organization. I appreciate how talented he was, how much he wanted to win, and I’m grateful for the experience to get to know him.”
- The Celtics plan to increase their crowd size for Game 3 of the playoff series and hope to be “near full” capacity for Game 4, tweets Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated.
Eastern Notes: Irving, Holiday, Turner, Hornets, Howard
As Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link) details, Nets guard Kyrie Irving met the criteria for four of the eight bonuses in his contract this year, earning a total of $525K in incentives ($131,250 apiece). Three of those bonuses were considered unlikely entering the season but will now be considered likely for 2021/22, bumping Irving’s cap hit for next year to approximately $35.46MM.
Another standout Eastern Conference guard, Jrue Holiday earned a third $255K bonus this week for appearing in at least 59 games averaging more than 3.15 rebounds, Marks notes. Having already earned $765K in incentives, Holiday could further increase that number if he’s named to an All-Defensive team ($100K), if the Bucks come out of the East ($200K), and/or if Milwaukee wins the title ($1MM).
Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:
- Pacers center Myles Turner, who has appeared in just one game since April 6, is still dealing with turf toe and won’t be available for the team’s play-in game on Tuesday, tweets J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star. “I don’t think so,” head coach Nate Bjorkgren said on Sunday. “I wouldn’t expect Myles the next game.”
- The Hornets will increase the capacity of the Spectrum Center to 60% (about 12,000 fans) for the postseason, the team announced in a press release. The Hornets previously had a 25% capacity for home games, but North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has lifted gathering restrictions in the state.
- Sixers center Dwight Howard served a one-game suspension on Friday for having accumulated 16 technical fouls this year. However, Howard will get a fresh slate for the postseason, where he’d have to rack up seven more technicals before earning an automatic suspension.
Nets Notes: Big Three, Durant, Harris, James
The Nets had their Big Three together in the starting lineup for the first time in three months as they defeated the Bulls this afternoon, writes Malika Andrews of ESPN. Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving have all been dealing with injuries since the combination was formed, but they appear to be healthy and focused heading into the playoffs.
This was the first chance for the crowd at the Barclays Center to enjoy watching the superstar trio, as fans weren’t allowed in the building the last time they all started together on February 13. Despite the long break from playing together, Durant said they were able to adapt quickly.
“We’ve all been playing the game for a while, so I feel like we can adjust and adapt as time goes on,” he said. “Injuries kept us away from playing with each other, but mentally, we were always locked in and trying to find different ways to play. Our voices were loud on the bench when we were injured. Guys always talking in the film room. Guys are just actually playing minutes now. But we always been in constant communication with each other and trying to figure out the best way to play.”
There’s more from Brooklyn:
- Durant expects to play in the Nets’ regular season finale on Sunday, but that could change if there’s nothing at stake, Andrews adds in the same piece. If the Bucks lose to the Heat tonight, Brooklyn will clinch the second seed in the East. “We want to finish the season off, so I’m sure we’re all looking at that game and seeing what happens,” Durant said. “Just for rhythm and just to get back on the court again, I want to play. But we’ll see what happens tonight.”
- Joe Harris sat out today’s game and won’t play tomorrow due to a left gluteal strain, according to Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press. However, coach Steve Nash said it’s a slight strain and Harris is expected to be ready for the playoffs.
- The Nuggets made a strong effort to sign Mike James after he was suspended by CSKA Moscow in March, writes Dionysis Aravantinos of Eurohoops. James didn’t have an American agent, so he was represented by his friend, Mo Smith, who put him in touch with the Nets. Durant’s brother, Tony, is Smith’s business partner and a friend of James, so he wanted to steer him toward Brooklyn.
Nets Notes: Irving, Durant, Griffin, Harden
The facial contusion that Kyrie Irving suffered Tuesday night isn’t believed to be serious, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Irving was held out of Wednesday’s game, but the Nets are hoping he can return to the court this weekend.
Irving took an inadvertent elbow to the face from Bulls center Nikola Vucevic during the third quarter of Tuesday’s contest. He was down on the court for several minutes and was eventually ruled out of the game.
“Kyrie’s scans were clear fortunately,” coach Steve Nash said. “No concussion, nothing on the scans.”
There’s more from Brooklyn:
- Kevin Durant and Blake Griffin played Wednesday on the second end of a back-to-back, Lewis notes in the same piece. Although both veterans have a history of injuries, they want to focus on getting ready for the postseason. “Kevin wants to play and get his rhythm and continue to get back to his best, and then just feel comfortable heading into the playoffs,” Nash said. “So you’re trying to find that balance between where the risk is, but also where they feel most confident for the playoffs. So, it’s one of those things where I take a leap of faith in what would make them feel best and make them feel in rhythm and confident prepared and then at the same time, not risking anything.”
- James Harden, who had never missed more than 10 games in a season prior to 2020/21, acknowledged that he wasn’t sure what to expect upon returning this week from the longest absence of his career. However, as Lewis writes in a separate story for The New York Post, Harden also wasn’t surprised by his big game on Wednesday (18 points and 11 assists in 26 minutes). “Not really,” he said. “Not to brag or anything, but I’m really good at this game.”
- Owner Joe Tsai is taking advantage of the Nets’ success to seek new sponsorship deals for the team, but the name of the Barclays Center is unlikely to change, according to Brianna Lopez of the BK Reader.
- In case you missed it, Mike James – whose 10-day deal with the Nets expired overnight – is set to sign a rest-of-season contract with the team.