NBA 2021/22 on Sunday, 02.01.2022
One of the last games of last year is also one of the first in the new one. We are talking about the rematch between the Brooklyn Nets and the Los Angeles Clippers, which this time will take place in New York.
The personnel situation at Lob City is disastrous. While Kevin Durant is returning on the other side, the centre mast is breaking for the Californians! Centre Ivica Zubac will be forced to watch for the first time in half an eternity!
Nets fans have reason to rejoice – not so much because of yesterday’s 102-110 loss to the Sixers – but rather because of the return of Kevin Durant, who made an immediate impact in his comeback with 33 points.
But that’s not all: In just a few days, the last member of New York’s Big Three will return. Vaccination refusenik Kyrie Irving trained with the team for the first time and could be back on the floor for the first time in the first week of January!
The bottom line is that things are going so well for the Black and Whites! After all, they are at the top of their Conference with a record of 23-10. But once they can finally draw from the full, there will probably be no stopping them.
For their part, the Clippers are playing an average season that isn’t blowing anyone away in Los Angeles. However, this also has to do with the fact that Paul George and Leonard Kawhi are currently injured – two indispensable elements in the game of the Californians.
The absence of these two superstars became noticeable just a few days ago. Shortly before New Year’s Day, the Clippers and the Nets had a showdown in which the New Yorkers seemed to have an easy game (124:108).
Just a few days later, the re-match will see two significant personnel changes that clearly play into Brooklyn’s favour. One concerns the already mentioned comeback of Kevin Durant, who had to take a break in the last duel.
The second change compared to the last meeting concerns the only constant in the game of the Clippers!
Ivica Zubac is indispensable at the centre position for the visitors. After 205 consecutive appearances, however, Corona has now forced him into quarantine, which has resulted in an enormous change for Lob City.
Besides the already mentioned absences of George and Leonard, Batum, Boston and the German Hartenstein are also out. Given all these absences, Los Angeles certainly can’t hold out against the Nets for long.
By the way, who to pay special attention to is James Harden. “The Beard” has only been back in the black and white jersey for a few days. But what we have seen from him so far has been quite something.
36, 39, 33 – that was the superstar’s score in his first three games after his comeback. The 39 points stand out especially and were scored in the duel against the Clippers, of all teams, where he was also named Man of the Match.
A player bet on more than 30 points from The Beard could now be worthwhile – especially in view of the absence of Ivica Zubac. Incidentally, the provider Bet365 is a convincing contact for this type of bet.
By the way, both teams met a total of 3 times in the calendar year 2021, which is now over – and Brooklyn came out on top in all of those games!
Conclusion: The Clippers are missing a lot of stars, which is why the current balanced record of the Californians is absolutely okay under these circumstances. But a slight downward trend will probably be inevitable in the next few days.
Lob City already lost to the New Yorkers a few days ago by almost 20 points. But now the “iron centre” Ivica Zubac is also out.
On the other side, Kevin Durant returns to the court. Although he did not celebrate a victory in his recent comeback, he left his distinctive scent under the opponent’s basket with more than 30 points.
In view of these significant personnel changes, the Nets should be able to win even more clearly this time than just a few days ago!
