Since James Harden arrived in Brooklyn, and even before, the Nets have not shied away from their championship aspirations.
But Harden recently put them in plain sight.
“We’re more than confident it will be tough for a team to beat us four times in one of the best series,” Harden told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols in an interview aired Friday. “I’m excited and it’s only been a month. We all try to achieve a goal and this is an NBA championship. “
Saturday’s game with the Warriors will mark Harden’s 14th game with the Nets, but only his seventh with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving on the floor with him. The Nets are 4-2 when their big 3s have adapted together.
The Nets will be without center DeAndre Jordan on Saturday as he usually has a personal problem. Coach Steve Nash said the Nets expect Jordan to reunite with them during his five-game trip and continue testing for COVID-19 in the meantime, which would allow him to play immediately once he’s ready.
Jeff Green is likely to slide into the small ball center position, a role he has often played this season, especially with the Warriors missing center-back James Wiseman (wrist).
“Hopefully this isn’t the kiss of death, but actually the Warriors game is a team that is playing very small right now with all their real centers out,” Nash said. “So I don’t mean to be fortuitous, because they’re such a tough team to defend anyway, but it could have been a tough showdown for a traditional center anyway.”
The Nets also feature newly signed centers Norvel Pelle and Noah Vonleh.
Some players have talked about the mental stress he has taken on this season, as the COVID-19 protocols don’t allow much beyond going to the court to play games or setting up the team to practice. Durant has a different perspective.
“I mean [shoot], it’s not that bad, ”he said.“ We’re charging millions of dollars to make copies and do something we love every day. We will find out the rest. “
These protocols also make team bond opportunities more difficult, in the traditional sense, especially on a Western trip such as the Nets.
“In the 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 doesn’t happen at COVID for a while, so we’ll have to find creative ways to keep growing and find that link.”
Nic Claxton (right knee tendinopathy) will travel with the Nets and is expected to finally start working with his “ready” group.