NBA 2021/22 on Friday, 25.02.2022
During the short All-Star break, all teams were given a brief breather – and the Brooklyn Nets sorely needed it. However, I doubt that the New Yorkers were able to recover much from their problems.
In my Nets Celtics tip, I therefore strongly assume that the C’s will be able to repeat their success over the Black and Whites from a few weeks ago. Especially since the home side has a much weaker starting five in terms of personnel.
It could have been perhaps the most dominant NBA team of all time, but by now it is not only clear that nothing will come of it, but that the Nets’ season could already be over! Because the domestic peace continues to hang crooked.
At least hours before the trade deadline, the New York board of directors realised that it was necessary to let James Harden go. The superstar, who has since left for the Sixers, was a source of trouble for the Black and Whites.
For The Beard, the Nets got Ben Simmons, who, like their centre Kevin Durant, is out injured until further notice and will therefore definitely not be available in the first game after the All-Star Break against the Celtics.
But the problems continue! Since it is a home game, Kyrie Irving will not be able to play for Brooklyn due to his unwillingness to be vaccinated, according to the New York City ordinance.
This means that the personnel situation before this game is almost exactly the same as on 9 February, when there was already a direct encounter, which Boston dominated with 126:91. A similar course of play can be expected again in the rematch.
Especially since the Celtics are on the rise and were able to make some good deals at the trade deadline. Meanwhile, there is no NBA team on the floor that went into the All-Stark-Break with such a good record: 9 wins out of the last 10 games!
There are no reasons to believe that the Nets could get their act together – on the contrary. After Harden, it now looks like Irving wants to transfer as well. In fact, the point guard could also pull the player option due to his vaccination status and leave the franchise soon.
All this is causing turmoil within a team that is only a slightly better than average team in terms of quality due to the absences and transfer requests of its superstars – yet bookmakers like Bet365 were still trading Brooklyn as the title favourites at the start of the season.
What remains is a starting five that features young elements in the form of Kessler Edwards, who is being wasted. Only 21-years-old, he has been moved into the starting line-up due to tightness and has failed to score a point in five of his last eight outings!
An Andre Drummond at the centre position like in the last game against the Wizards is also not what Nets fans were hoping for! This is because the latter is only the third, if not fourth choice at this important position.
In short: Boston starts in the better shape and the clearly better team. With an average of 25.7 points, Jayson Tatum is the mainstay of the C’s game and a player to whom the Nets already had no answer in the last encounter (19 points).
The bottom line is that Brooklyn has won three of its last four NBA games against Boston, but those victories all date back to before the turn of the year, when the Black and Whites were at full strength and on course for the title.
However, the season is going everything else according to plan, while the C’s could hardly be going better! No wonder Boston are the clear favourites to win this match, with low odds of around 1.53.
Conclusion: If I were to compare the Nets to a ship, I would have compared them to the Titanic just a few months ago! But much like the real cruise ship, the passengers are currently making off – most notably Harden and possibly soon Irving.
Brooklyn has lost twelve of its last fourteen NBA games and has to fill its vacancies with players who simply cannot meet the demands of the black and whites. In fact, the personnel situation is the same as in the last duel against Boston.
At the beginning of November, the C’s beat the New Yorkers 126-91 and thus made it clear why the Green and Whites must be counted among the playoff teams.
My Nets Celtics tip: Win of the C’s with handicap -7!
