Brooklyn Nets: 3 keys to victory over the Boston Celtics

The Nets looked almost flawless during their opening night rout of the Warriors, but with theCeltics on deck, a greater challenge awaits.

A week ago, Kyrie Irving was mocked for burning sage before the preseason game against the Boston Celtics, but he had the last laugh with a 17-point, five-assist performance. Perhaps Brooklyn’s detrimental trade history with Boston, or maybe Uncle Drew’s alternative viewpoints regarding the NBA as a whole, stand responsible for all this unwarranted criticism regarding Irving and the Nets, but none of it matters.

During the team’s first regular season game, the Nets quieted any dwindling laughter, and instead left many scratching their heads over how they might be stopped.

Tuesday night’s 26-point victory over Golden State truly felt like a dream come true for Nets fans, delivering a long-awaited and highly anticipated product. Irving and Kevin Durant looked absolutely unstoppable together, blowing past the Warriors with 27 combined first quarter points while shooting 66% from the field. Irving finished with 26 and Durant with 22, as neither played more than 25 minutes with their services no longer being required after the third quarter.

Caris LeVert contributed notably as well with a 20/9/5 game, successfully rekindling the fire which he started months ago during bubble play. Solid efforts from Jarrett Allen, Spencer Dinwiddie, and Joe Harris contributed to the victory too, as the team absolutely smoked Steph Curry and Co.

A nod to rookie head coach Steve Nash feels justified as well. Although often overlooked due to the general benefits that come with a roster filled overflowing with talent like Brooklyn’s. Navigating through it with the right substitutions and effective schemes in place stands as an incredibly difficult task nonetheless. Nash got the job done, as his team operated with very few kinks or interruptions, especially from an offensive standpoint.

But even with essentially no complaints thus far regarding this Brooklyn Nets squad, overlooking a group like the Boston Celtics on Christmas Day might prove fatal to the team’s superlative start to the season. Before things tip off at TD Garden, the Nets must address these three factors if they hope to improve to 2-0.

3. Perimeter Defense

The Nets need to keep the Celtics in check along the perimeter.

The Warriors barely shot 30% from beyond the arc against the Nets, but if you watched the game, that stat appears a bit misleading, as missed open shots by Golden State shooters stood more responsible for it. There wasn’t exactly astute perimeter defense from the Nets. Brooklyn’s defense managed to bottle up Curry decently, but other players along the wing like Kelly Oubre Jr. and Andrew Wiggins often found themselves with good looks, but failed to cash in.

It feels highly unlikely that the ball will continue to rim-out for Brooklyn’s opponents if they continue to provide such high percentage opportunities. So, when facing off against a better all-around shooting team like the Celtics, this defensive lapse cannot continue.

Players like Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown certainly deserve some extra defensive attention with their three-point shooting skills, as Tatum shot 40% from the deep last year, with Brown just behind him at 38%. Marcus Smart is also a threat. Although he only shot 34.7% from downtown last year, Smart wields a knack for hitting even his most contested shots, making him dangerous at any time.

With so much firepower along the wing, the Nets need to adjust faster on their defensive switches, as their mistiming a few nights ago led to most open looks for the Warriors. Additionally, DeAndre Jordan often neglected to extend out from under the paint to bother open shooters. Jordan made this an unfortunate tendency last year too, and for the Nets to operate properly from a defensive standpoint against the Celtics and most other teams, Jordan needs to institute a bit more hustle into his game.