To get hyped for this season, Brooklyn Nets fans have to go all the way back to the summer of ’19 when the Nets officially signed Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. Kevin Durant looks back to his regular self after missing 18 months with an Achilles injury when he dropped 18 points in 15 minutes in the Nets first preseason game against the Wizards while Irving also dropped 15. They looked like the dynamic duo they were signed to be.
While this offseason was riddled with James Harden trade rumors, it looks like talks between the Rockets and Nets have ceased. Which is a good thing because the Nets young core of Caris LeVert, Spencer Dinwiddie, and Jarrett Allen are all returning with some more playoff experience under their belt, and more veteran leadership coming from Irving, Durant, and Deandre Jordan.
Do not forget the Nets also cleaned house this offseason firing four coaches and replacing them with first-time head coach, former NBA MVP Steve Nash, a new assistant coach in Mike D’Antoni to go along with the already underrated assistant Jacque Vaughn and the former All-Star big man Amare Stoudemire as a player development assistant.
This season will be different from any other season in NBA history as we are still in the middle of a pandemic, so the league decided to cut the number of games by ten so all NBA teams will play 72 games instead of the regular 82, which bodes well for the players because that means there’s less chance of an injury.
The Eastern conference also stayed relatively the same, with only the Atlanta Hawks and Milwaukee Bucks making notable moves this offseason. The Bucks adding Jrue Holiday and signing Giannis for the next five years. The Hawks also signed some veteran stars like Danilo Gallinari, Rajon Rondo, and Bogdan Bogdanovic. Everyone expects the Bucks to finish as the one seed, but I think the Nets are the only team that can challenge them for it this season.
The Nets also have some key role players returning this season, with Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Landry Shamet, and Tyler Johnson all set to return in their usual backup/reserve roles. With all that has happened in the year 2020, Nets fans finally have something to look forward to this season. These next two season for Brooklyn fans is to become NBA champions or bust, and with all the talent and new coaches on the roster, I can see the Nets being major title contenders this season.
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