Latest news with #EasternConferenceSemi-finals
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Kevin Durant, Steve Nash explain what went wrong while with Nets
The Brooklyn Nets were once considered a title contender in the NBA not too long ago when Houston Rockets forward Kevin Durant and head coach Steve Nash were in town. Brooklyn seemed to be in good hands with Durant and Nash leading the team to a title, but all of those aspirations ended during the 2022-23 season and the duo have finally discussed why. "I just signed that deal, you had just signed a deal, but I feel like we were secure, but everything else around us was going to (expletive), not in a bad way," Durant said to Nash during an recent episode of the "Mind The Game" podcast with Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James. Nash and James co-host the podcast, but Durant was brought on a guest to talk about various topics, including his time in Brooklyn. "We got GMs going to other teams, we got coaches going to other teams, we got players forcing trades. We got Ben Simmons, his back (is messed up) like it was just so much stuff going on around us," Durant continued. "I feel like we were locked in on the same page and (we) understand we were trying to do something special here. I felt like your hands were tied a lot, because as a coach, you got to deal with so much." Despite coming off an Achilles injury in the 2019 NBA Finals as a member of the Golden State Warriors, Durant came to the Nets in June 2019 via a sign-and-trade agreement because of the opportunity to play with guard Kyrie Irving. Heading into the 2020-21 season, Brooklyn hired Nash as head coach and the Nets looked poised to compete for a championship even prior to trading for guard James Harden. The best that would be seen from the Big 3 era in Brooklyn was in the 2021 NBA playoffs when the Nets made it to the Eastern Conference Semi-finals before losing to the Milwaukee Bucks in seven games. Harden requested a trade midway through the 2021-22 campaign while Durant and Irving were traded midway through the 2022-23 season, after Nash was fired following a 2-5 start to the season. "I didn't get to coach as much as I wanted to," Nash said in response to Durant talking about what was going on behind the scenes, such as Harden wanting out. Durant has already spoken about what happened in Brooklyn prior to this podcast, but it seems that he admitted that Nash was put in a tough position due to everything that was happening during one of the most exciting eras in Nets history.
USA Today
15-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Former Nets HC Steve Nash to join Amazon Prime's NBA broadcast team
Former Nets HC Steve Nash to join Amazon Prime's NBA broadcast team The Brooklyn Nets are in the midst of their preparation for the 2025 NBA Draft with the Draft Combine happening in Chicago this week. There are plenty of players and coaches that have come through Brooklyn in their search to find their place in the league and while some stick around, there are some who go on to create their own lanes within the league. Former Nets head coach Steve Nash will be joining Amazon Prime's NBA coverage for next season, according to NBA insider Marc Stein. Currently, Nash is co-hosting the "Mind The Game" podcast with Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James as James seeks to make his way into the media portion of the NBA, something that could be his second career very soon. As Amazon announced following the report, Nash will be Udonis Haslem, Dwyane Wade, and Candace Parker, three players that have made their impact on the game of basketball in their own way. Following Stein's report, former Dallas Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki confirmed that he will be part of the team as well and is looking forward to doing what he did for Nash during their playing days in Dallas. Nash is one of the greatest players to ever step on an NBA floor as the Hall-of-Famer was a two-time league MVP, named to the NBA's 75th anniversary team, and led the league in assists five times during his 18-year career. Nash is best known for his time with the Phoenix Suns as he won both of his MVP awards while with the Suns, but he also spent six of his first eight years in the Association with the Mavericks. After his playing career ended, Nash tried to perform a second act in the NBA by way of being a head coach with the Nets from 2020 to 2022. Nash's time as Brooklyn head coach coincided with one of the most exciting eras in franchise history given that Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden were all on the roster at one point when the team was considered a championship contender. Nash's coaching career with Brooklyn began swimmingly as he led the team to the Eastern Conference Semi-finals before losing to the Milwaukee Bucks in seven games. By the time Nash's coaching tenure with the Nets was over less than two years later, he finished with a 94-67 record, showing that Nash had some good moments with the franchise when there wasn't drama going on.
USA Today
08-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Nets' Trendon Watford reacts to Mikal Bridges, Knicks win over Celtics
Nets' Trendon Watford reacts to Mikal Bridges, Knicks win over Celtics The Brooklyn Nets are currently on vacation as they are not participating in the 2025 NBA playoffs, but there are other players that have played for the organization that are playing some good basketball right now. Former Brooklyn guard Mikal Bridges had some good moments with the team and now, he is trying to help his New York Knicks pull off an upset over the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semi-finals. After a Game 1 performance that saw Bridges struggle to shoot the ball well while coming up with the defensive play to seal the game in the end, he did the same thing on Wednesday In the Knicks' 91-90 win at the Celtics. Bridges stuffed the stat sheet once again as he put up 14 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals, including the steal at the end of the game to seal the win for New York. After trailing by as many as 20 points in the game, Bridges and the Knicks managed to come all the way back to make things interesting in the second half, especially in the fourth quarter that New York won 30-17. Not only was Bridges clutch on the defensive end, but he stepped up to the challenge on the offensive end as well as he scored all 14 of his points in the final period. The Knicks managed win this game to lead the series 2-0 and there were other players that helped out Bridges in the winning effort. Forward Josh Hart had one of his best games in the playoffs thus far with his 23 points, six rebounds, and three assists while center Karl-Anthony Towns bounced back with 21 points and 17 rebounds in 35 minutes of floor time. The Celtics played well enough to build a 20-point, but they did that in spite of their stars as forward Jayson Tatum dropped just 13 points on 5-of-19 shooting from the field while Jaylen Brown struggled to a finish of 20 points on 8-of-23 shooting from the floor. In what many on social media are discussing, Boston also struggled mightily shooting the ball from three-point land for the second straight as they made of 10-of-40 three-pointers (25.0%). In the end, Bridges and the Knicks what they had to do to steal two games on the road in Boston as they attempt to change the narrative of them not being able to beat the best teams in the East. Nets forward Trendon Watford, Bridges' former teammate, reacted to how Bridges played in the fourth quarter by saying that he caught on fire at the right time in the postseason.
USA Today
06-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Former Nets guard Mikal Bridges, Knicks stun Celtics in Game 1 OT win
Former Nets guard Mikal Bridges, Knicks stun Celtics in Game 1 OT win The Brooklyn Nets are focused on how to improve this offseason in a significant way, most likely through the 2025 NBA Draft and beyond in terms of adding talent to the roster. One player that used to play for Brooklyn, Mikal Bridges, is trying to help the New York Knicks upset the defending champion Boston Celtics in the second round of the 2025 NBA playoffs. In Monday's 108-105 overtime win at the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semi-finals, Bridges filled the stat sheet with eight points, six rebounds, seven assists, three steals and two blocks to help the Knicks come away with the victory. Not only did New York come back from a 20-point deficit, but Bridges had the game-sealing steal of Boston guard Jaylen Brown to boot. The Knicks go as Jalen Brunson goes and he had another spectacular performance with 29 points, four rebounds, five assists, and two steals to lead New York to victory against a vaunted Celtics team. Brunson wasn't alone with his contributions as forward OG Anunoby had himself a game as well with 29 points of his own to go with four rebounds and three assists. Bridges, 28, ended up with the Knicks through a trade from the Nets this past offseason when Brooklyn sent Bridges to New York in exchange for a bevy of first-round picks to jumpstart the Nets' rebuild. The Knicks were trying to amass a team strong enough to compete with the best teams in the league and Bridges was one of the players they felt could aid in that mission. As a reward for trading Bridges to the Knicks, the Nets have four first-round picks in the upcoming 2025 NBA Draft, including their own pick that could be the No. 1 overall pick if they're lucky. Brooklyn also has the 19th pick and the 26th pick from the Milwaukee Bucks and the Knicks, respectively, thanks to the deal with New York and the result could be the Nets looking significantly different next season.
USA Today
11-02-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Nets took gamble on Ben Simmons in what was an impossible situation
Nets took gamble on Ben Simmons in what was an impossible situation The Brooklyn Nets did not do much during the trade deadline as they decided to keep the team as is with players like Cam Johnson and Nic Claxton leading the way. One of the few changes that Brooklyn made this season was buying out Ben Simmons, a player that the franchise took a chance on during the 2021-22 season while Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden were in town. Simmons, who signed with the Los Angeles Clippers after coming to a buyout agreement with the Nets, officially ends an era that began with Durant and Irving pulling off one of the most exciting moves in NBA history by signing with Brooklyn as a duo. Trading for Simmons was probably not Nets general manager Sean Marks' first choice, but something had to be done after Harden did what he did against the Sacramento Kings on Feb. 2, 2022. Based on where Brooklyn was headed after Durant and Irving signed with the franchise as free-agents heading into the 2019-20 season, Nets fans were understandably excited about their team finally rising to the level of title contenders for the first time since the early 2000s. However, two seasons after Durant and Irving came to Brooklyn is when things began to fall apart after Harden wanted out. Harden, who referred to the Nets as a "dysfunctional" organization during his 1.5 seasons with the team, decided that he wanted out despite the fact that he, Durant, and Irving did not play that much together during that time span. That led to the Nets having to make a choice between honoring Harden's trade request or doing what some had suggested they do by making Harden stay with the team and work things out that way. Ultimately, Brooklyn did what most teams do, the Miami Heat and Jimmy Butler is the latest example that comes to mind, by giving in to the superstar's demands. On Feb 10, 2022, the Nets traded Harden and Paul Millsap to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, a 2023 first-round draft pick that turned in Brice Sensabaugh and a 2027 first-round draft pick that could look enticing given how much Philadelphia is struggling this season with injuries. While Harden was a disgruntled player who had earned the reputation as a guy who leaned towards wanting out of situations as opposed to working through them, he did lead the 76ers, along with superstar center Joel Embiid, to the Eastern Conference Semi-finals in both of his seasons in Philadelphia. Simmons, on the other hand, did not play during the 2021-22 season due to a mix of not wanting to play for Philadelphia after what happened in the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals against the Atlanta Hawks and a herniated disk in his back. While Simmons played just 90 games for the Nets over the course of 3.5 seasons, he had an uphill battle dealing with the kind of injuries that he sustained as he had to have back surgery, get his left knee drained, and have a microscopic partial discectomy (another back surgery) before it was all said and done. Despite the fact that Simmons did not play well by the standards that he set during his time in Philadelphia as a three-time All-Star, he did have moments where he showed that the talent was still there. In the ongoing debate over whether the Nets won the Harden-Simmons trade, it's important to note that the 76ers continued winning with Harden for the two seasons that he remained with the team. More to the point, Philadelphia was also able to trade Harden for a package including Marcus Morris Sr., Nic Batum, KJ Martin, Robert Covington, two first-round picks, and three second-round picks in a three-team deal with the Los Angeles Clippers and the Oklahoma City Thunder. Simmons was never able to get back to the player that he was with the 76ers, except for in spurts, and ultimately, his value amounted to that of a buyout candidate when his time with the Nets ended. Ironically, Simmons and Harden will be playing together with the Clippers after so many years of being connected through this trade and yet, neither team they were traded to won a title. Simmons' time in Brooklyn will always be a tale of what could have been if things had worked out for the Nets, but given that Simmons was contemplating retirement during his time with the organization, it's safe to say that he gave it his best effort to be what was expected of him. However, if a Harden-level situation arose again, Brooklyn made the kind of decision that can backfire either way. Now, they are left to figure out a way forward to possibly get back to that point again and hope for a better result. If anyone wants a summary of the Simmons-Harden trade from someone who has been in the New York media to witness everything that has happened since then, YES Network's Frank Isola had an succinct description:
