The Brooklyn Nets are starting to reunite.
After facing some early growth pains, I leave the longest journey of the season so far a perfect 5-0. In the process, Brooklyn has begun to answer clear questions about how good their defenses need to compete at the highest level. Their West Coast swing included victories over the Los Angeles Lakers and LA Clippers – two teams at the top of the Western Conference standings that the Nets could face in the NBA Finals.
Brooklyn returns home with the longest winning streak of the season – and they do without Kevin Durant, who continues to treat a hamstring strain and missed Brooklyn’s last four games.
“I came here with a plan to be able to build something here in Brooklyn,” Kyrie Irving said after defeating the Clippers 112-108 Sunday night. “I think for now, winning six in a row, all he does is keep the world a little quiet and then, you know, wait until we hit a roadblock.”
Before the Nets started winning, their path was bumpy. They excelled against good teams, but they struggled to beat the bottom of the league. Prior to that series, Brooklyn lost by two to the Detroit Pistons. Nets players and coaches agree that it served as a turning point.
“We weren’t connected at all,” Irving said. “It was embarrassing. So we just want to keep asking for that standard of excellence.”
Now, the Nets are 12-4 against teams that are .500 or better this season; according to ESPN Statistics and Information research, this is the best winning rate (75%) in the league.
James Harden said he noticed a “night and day” difference in Nets resistance from the time he joined the team in mid-January until now. Harden said the team is “playing hard” and “playing smart” right now.
“I’ve had a lot of frustrating losses,” Harden said. “We don’t want this to haunt us at the end of the season. So we decided, as a team, to take it collectively, each individual.”
The Nets will look to extend their winning streak to seven on Tuesday against the visiting Kings, whom Brooklyn defeated in Sacramento during the team’s western trip.