The Brooklyn Nets faced the Orlando Magic in a game that was never one in the franchise’s history and possibly not for the NBA in general. It was James Harden’s first meeting since leaving the Houston Rockets, in addition to the new meeting with Kevin Durant, who knew he was his teammate in the Oklahoma City Thunder.
If any fan of the league expected the pair to start shining from the first game with a difference of 20 points, Magic showed that it will not be so. The Nets, without Kyrie Irving indefinitely, had to fight for 48 minutes to be able to sign the first victory with Harden in the team.
La Barba had a first quarter in which he could be noticed a little nervous, without making all those decisions that previously belonged to him in the Rockets. Harden scored just two points in the first 12 minutes, showing that he is human, although Orlando also showed that they will play beyond any presentation.
The meeting continued to be uniform until the end, although in the end it weighed the hierarchy, which the whole franchise hopes to repeat often. The Brooklyn Nets won 122-115 for their eighth win of the season. Meanwhile, the Orlando Magic once again had a negative record, a product of its 6-7 record.
James Harden made his triple-double debut for the Brooklyn Nets
James Harden improved remarkably as the minutes passed and ended the night with a triple-double. La Barba made his Brooklyn Nets debut with 32 points, 14 assists and 12 rebounds. In turn, Kevin Durant was the team’s top scorer thanks to his 42 units, in addition to 5 assists and 4 tables.