Brooklyn Nets: As James Harden returns, all is going according to plan
As James Harden’s return looms, the Brooklyn Nets are sitting pretty.
James Harden is reportedly on the precipice of making his return to the Brooklyn Nets’ lineup and, barring an unforeseen setback, it appears that the Brooklyn Nets will be heading into the playoffs, for the most part, healthy.
In essence, this is exactly what Brooklyn was betting on and it appears to have paid off – with one exception, however.
The Nets have to be holding out hope that Irving clears all hurdles that potentially come with a facial injury, but it’s unclear after the first round of testing proved to be inconclusive. He did pass the concussion test, which is good news.
The Brooklyn Nets bet on themselves, and it’s about to pay off
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Assuming that Irving is ready to go for the playoffs (even if he has to wear some sort of protective gear on his face), all is going according to plan for the Nets. The trio of Harde, Irving, and Kevin Durant has only played in seven games together, but that doesn’t really matter.
When healthy, the Nets are one of the most overwhelming offenses in NBA history and may not even need an elite defense to win a championship. In fact, that’s largely the question that will be tested during the playoffs.
Even though there were doubts at certain points over the last couple of weeks that perhaps Harden wouldn’t be back for the start of the playoffs, especially after he suffered a setback in his rehab, it looks like he will be. And he’ll have a game or two to work his way back into live-action shape and into a rhythm.
With just three games remaining in the regular season, the Nets are likely going to enter the postseason as the 2 or 3 seed. And are looking at a potential first-round matchup with either the winner of the play-in tournament or against the Knicks, Heat, or Hawks.
No matter who they face in the first round, it’s pretty clear that the Nets will be heavy favorites in any series. In fact, you can make the case that they’ll be favorites in a series against any team in the league – as long as they’re healthy, of course.
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And at least for right now, it all but appears that the Nets will be healthy to begin the playoffs. If nothing else, that’s a scary sight for any team that is hoping to make a deep run in the Eastern Conference playoffs.