East Coast Vs West Coast Rivalry is Back
Nets and Lakers Showdown
We’ve all heard of the East Coast and West Coast rivalry dating all the way to the Biggie Smalls and Tupac era… Well, rivalry between the East Coast and West Coast is back on in full force. The Los Angeles Lakers will face off against the Brooklyn Nets tonight for the first time since the Nets landed James Harden.
The Nets will be without Kevin Durant for a second straight game while Kyrie Irving is expected to play along with James Harden for Brooklyn. On the other hand, LeBron James will be riding solo without his running mate, Anthony Davis who irritated an Achilles injury and could be sidelined for a month or two.
Nonetheless, this newly found rivalry could be a look into the future. The Lakers are the favorites to come out of the West and the Nets are the favorites to come out of the East which means these two teams are on a collision course to face off in the 2021 NBA Finals. That would be quite the show, especially if both teams are fully healthy.
Tonight, while both of these powerhouse teams will not be a full strength, it will give fans a preview of what the NBA could have in store come July. LeBron James has been playing some of the best all-around basketball of his career at the age of 36. Brooklyn knew that they would need some additional fire power alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving if they are going to have a fighting chance to take out the defending Champion, Lakers come crunch time. That is why they went out and acquired James Harden.
So far, the Big 3 in Brooklyn has not been able to gain much chemistry as they have been unable to find themselves on the floor with one another very often. A mix of injuries along with the NBA’s health and safety protocols have stunted the Nets ability to see Harden, Irving and Durant on the floor at the same time.
The Nets are hoping that all three will be healthy in the next week so they can start to build the chemistry needed to take out the defending champs throughout a 7 game series. In 17 games since acquiring Harden, the Nets Big 3 have only played together 7 times with a record of 5–2. Harden has played 16 of the 17 games, Irving has played 13 of 17 games and Durant has played 10 of 17 games. It goes without saying that these three on the court with one another is a Championship combination. However, if they continue to have one or two of them out of the lineup each night, it will be tough for them to learn each other’s tendencies on the court and be able to mesh well when it counts.
Yes, Durant and Harden played with one another in OKC, but they are both completely different players now, especially Harden. If Brooklyn wants a fighting chance at taking out LeBron and AD come Finals time, they will need to get everyone healthy and on the floor to build that chemistry. It all starts tonight with the first meeting of these two Finals favorites since the inception of the Nets Big 3.
