Next season could be the last hurrah of the Brooklyn Nets featuring Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons. It could be their version of “The Last Dance” that will give the franchise their first NBA championship.
On “NBA on ESPN,” host Mike Greenberg lauded Nets team owner Joe Tsai for calling out KD and Irving’s bluffs. He also pointed out that their failure to get what they respectively want could be their biggest motivating factor next season. Greenberg said:
He added:
The drama around the Brooklyn Nets continued after they were swept by the Boston Celtics
Kyrie Irving wanted a max extension and when he couldn’t get it, tried to get out via the sign-and-trade option. “Uncle Drew” eventually opted into the final year of his contract because the LA Lakers couldn’t pursue him and there were no other takers.
Kevin Durant ramped up the circus by demanding a trade out of Barclays Center. A month later, he asked Joe Tsai to fire GM Sean Marks and head coach Steve Nash. The team owner refused and even publicly supported the front office and the coaching staff.
Both will be looking to bounce back from the humiliating setback in the offseason.
Mike Greenberg added that Ben Simmons is a forgotten top-level talent in the NBA. The former Philadelphia 76ers guard could prove to be the Brooklyn Nets’ x-factor if he resumes his All-Star play.
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Steve Nash has been irrevocably placed in the hot seat amid the Brooklyn Nets hoopla. It’s safe to say that the team’s superstars and the head coach will have some things to work on to be competitive next season.
If Nash can’t earn the trust of his Big 3 and Tsai publicly supports the head coach, things could get ugly quickly for Brooklyn. A head coach who doesn’t have control of the locker room will be ineffective, to say the least.
That a superstar like Kevin Durant asked the team owner to fire the head coach is not something new in the NBA. Sometimes it ends the way it did for Erik Spoelstra and LeBron James – with championship success. But it could also break a team.
The Brooklyn Nets have a long way to go to contend for the title next season. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving will have to learn to play for Steve Nash if they want to achieve what Joe Tsai called their “lofty aspirations.”
Ben Simmons, meanwhile, will need to return to his very best after recovering from back surgery.
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