Getty Kevin Durant drives against Jayson Tatum.
There’s been a lot of hoopla surrounding the upcoming series between the Boston Celtics and the Brooklyn Nets. While the Celtics have homecourt advantage, the Nets have offensive juggernauts Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving by their side to combat whatever Boston throws their way. While many believe this series has potential upset written all over it, TNT Analyst Charles Barkley doesn’t buy the hype in part because of how unconvincingly they beat Cleveland in the play-in.
Charles Barkley again says Nets won’t beat the Celtics t.co/93gndwEM1L
“There’s no way they can beat the Celtics. They got two great players. They both actually played as good as they probably can play… but other than that, I know they can’t beat the Celtics now. All these fools on these other morning talk shows can let this ship sail. Both those guys played great, and they barely beat a mediocre Cavs team.”
To be fair, in the first quarter, the Nets were up by 20 points once the first quarter ended, but the Cavaliers stormed back to cut it to six in the fourth. Though the Nets eventually pulled away, they did not make it easy on themselves. As Barkley said, this was in spite of excellent performances from Kevin Durant – 25 points, 11 assists, three blocks, and two steals – and Kyrie Irving – 34 points, 11 assists, and 80 percent shooting from the field. That reflects more on their supporting cast than anything else.
The biggest contrast between the Cavaliers and the Celtics is that this Boston team, in spite of having its best players be 24 and 25, has plenty of playoff experience to their name. They’ve made lengthy playoff runs, and they’ve faced Durant and Irving in the postseason before. If last night’s Nets’ team is who the Celtics are going to face, Boston doesn’t have much to worry about.
Ben Simmons’ Return Still Up in the Air
To Barkley’s point, the Nets didn’t exactly look like world-beaters when they beat the Cavaliers last night. Outside of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, the rest of the Nets roster isn’t all too impressive, but the one potential ace in the hole they have is the return of Ben Simmons.
There’s been a lot of speculation surrounding if the three-time all-star will return in time for the playoffs, and if he does, how up to speed he’ll be when he suits up for Brooklyn. It’s clear that Simmons has been practicing with the team in recent weeks, but there is still no specific timetable for when he’ll make his debut for the Nets. This latest report from Ian Begley of SNY doesn’t sound too promising.
Steve Nash says Ben Simmons hasn’t started sprinting and hasn’t progressed beyond 1-0 workouts yet.
A lot can change in a short amount of time, but it doesn’t sound like Simmons is progressing quickly. Even if he’ll be cleared to go, it also doesn’t sound like he’ll be at full strength for when the Nets face the Celtics. Not only does getting back from injuries take time, but getting in game shape does too.
Simmons’ presence can change a lot in this upcoming Nets-Celtics series, but if he’s not the same player he was prior to when the Nets acquired him, or if he doesn’t even show up at all, that hurts the Nets’ chances of upsetting the Celtics.
Oddsmakers Give Celtics Slight Edge
In spite of who is and who isn’t playing in the upcoming Nets-Celtics series, it seems that the gambling community doesn’t have a clear idea as to who will win this series. Even though the Celtics are the betting favorite, it doesn’t feel as though there’s much confidence in them.
For reference, DraftKings has given the Celtics a minus-130 line against the Nets, who were given a line of plus-110. That’s currently the lowest among their betting favorites in the first round of the NBA playoffs. The odds at FanDuel aren’t much better, as the Celtics have a line of minus-142 to win the series while the Nets have a line of plus-142.
It sounds like the gambling community doesn’t have a good read of where this series will go. This further emphasizes how much of a wild card Brooklyn is, and how in spite of how good the Nets could potentially be, the Celtics should be well-equipped to give them a good fight at the very least.
Comments