Ever since the Nets blew a couple of games early last season after allowing late game-tying three-pointers, Brooklyn Head Coach Steve Nash has had his players intentionally give fouls when up by three in the closing seconds--or sometimes as early as 15 seconds left in the contest.
So when the Nets, ahead 102-99 with 20 seconds remaining at Dallas on Tuesday night, set up their defense for the final possession, I assumed a lengthy free throw shooting contest would ensue.
Except Nash went unorthodox. The Nets did not foul, though James Harden did attempt to reach out to grab Dallas star Luka Doncic well after he released a pass to Tim Hardaway Jr. with about five seconds remaining. I won’t go through the entire sequence, but Brooklyn had several opportunities to wrap up a Maverick, including when Doncic dribbled inside the three-point arc close enough for James Johnson to give one up with about 11 seconds remaining.
Fortunately for Brooklyn, this was one of several unorthodox approaches on the night that panned out as both Doncic and Hardaway Jr. misfired on good three-point looks to cement a tremendous road victory for Brooklyn.
The Nets’ closing lineup of Kevin Durant, Harden, Johnson, Nic Claxton, and Patty Mills played the entire fourth quarter--with the exception of Brown going in for Mills for the aforementioned final 20 seconds. Claxton, who missed 19 games due to a non-Covid-19 illness (reportedly mononucleosis) and the subsequent recovery consisting of weight gain and conditioning, played a total of three minutes in his return to action during Friday’s win over Minnesota before sitting out the loss to Chicago the following night. That Nash suddenly trusted the third-year center to run for 17 minutes straight in Dallas came out of nowhere.
It was genius, though, for Claxton was instrumental in helping the Nets keep Doncic from taking control of the game down the stretch. When the Nets started switching all screens, Doncic initially sought out Claxton, thinking he could take a big man to any spot he wished on the court. Big mistake—Claxton’s length and ability to move his feet kept Doncic at bay. Per NBA.com, Doncic was 0-for-3 on field goal attempts when Claxton was the nearest defender.
Mavs coach Jason Kidd eventually adjusted by having point guard Jalen Brunson set the screens for Doncic to allow him to attack the undersized Mills instead. But though the Dallas offense got back on track, by that time the Nets had fully erased a 17-point deficit.
The other oddity of the 5-man lineup that had never been used previously this season was that playing multiple non-shooters like Claxton and Johnson together on the court goes against Nash’s ideal principles. However, the Nets offense did not go into the tank with the additional congestion in the paint, outscoring Dallas, 27-13 in the fourth quarter. Of course, it helped that Brooklyn has two players capable of dominating crunch time through sheer individual brilliance and both Harden and Durant made big-time buckets in the final 90 seconds to keep Brooklyn ahead.
Normally, Harden gets a few minutes of rest at the end of the third quarter while KD takes his second-half break at the start of the fourth quarter. However, with Dallas up, 86-75, heading into the final frame, Nash gambled that he could chase the game and had both stars in the lineup at the start of fourth quarter action. With a back-to-back staged for Wednesday in Houston, such a decision could have backfired.
Again, the unorthodox rotation paid off, as the Nets got the W and both Harden and Durant told the media that they planned to play the night after 41-minute outings (though Nash walked that back a bit with a “We’ll see” comment). KD ended his session by saying, “I might play 48 (minutes) tomorrow—just ‘cause. Give you something to talk about.”
For years, the Nets Performance Team was ultra-careful with their mandates for proper in-game rest and load management nights off, what YES studio host Frank Isola calls “The Minutes Police.” Here too Nash has gone against the grain, with Durant and Harden averaging about 40 and 39 minutes per game, respectively, over their last eight games, one/two in the NBA in that category. Nash knows it’s a risk to overburden his stars during the early part of the regular season, but he once said his alternative is to play KD less and lose more.
As someone who was highly critical of the Nash hiring prior to last season, I must admit that he has made great strides this season, especially considering the Kyrie Irving distraction, with the superstar guard effectively banned from the team until he chooses to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. There will still be instances where I disagree with strategy, such as why was Claxton on the court for an offensive possession with 39 seconds remaining? His poor free throw shooting could have proven costly when he missed a pair before the final chaos.
Still, the Nets (17-7, tops in the Eastern Conference, third overall in the NBA) keep banking wins while simultaneously figuring out their new identity minus Irving. I have to give Nash credit for understanding that sometimes, a little unorthodox thinking helps keep the train moving forward.
I fixed it. Wink, Wink
As someone who was highly critical of the Nash hiring prior to last season, I must admit that he has made great strides this season, especially considering the Kyrie Irving distraction, with the superstar guard effectively banned from the team until the RIDICULOUS UNCONSTITUTIONAL, NON-SCIENCE BASED NYC MANDATE IS OVERTURNED
Also gotta give Nash credit for the challenge of Harden swipe of Luka. May have been a no brainer to some, but Reggie Miller was adamant that the call was going to stand (double goof by him because he also stated it would have been BKN's final timeout)
Surely appeared like it was going to be yet another disappointing loss where the other team's 2 stars collectively outdueled ours for 3 quarters. I was about to go on a "this-is-why-i-hated-the-trade-for-Harden" rant but then he reminded me of what he did all of last year for us.
Weird rotations, weird game, we'll take the W