Nets don’t need major change to Jarrett Allen-DeAndre Jordan formula

Steve Nash just needs to hold firm and not give in to the Jarrett Allen-DeAndre Jordan debate.

Brooklyn Nets fans are searching for reasons as to why a team with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in the starting lineup and a stable of talented coaches on the sideline could’ve started the season 3-4, and they’ve focused on the interior defense. While no one expected DeAndre Jordan and Jarrett Allen to be great offensive pieces, their defense hasn’t been up to par, and Allen performing better over the course of the first seven games threatens to cause a schism between Nets fans.

If Steve Nash is smart, he’ll resist the calls to make a drastic shakeup in the rotation. Rather, he’ll ask GM Sean Marks to get the overworked Jordan and Allen some help on the interior.

Sean Marks deserves blame for the Nets’ poor interior defense, not just DeAndre Jordan and Jarrett Allen

Marks is without question one of the league’s best GMs, as his work in turning the Nets around and pulling off the KD-Kyrie-Jordan sweep is a testament to his skill. However, he is not beyond reproach. Outside of Allen and Jordan, the Nets are one of the smallest teams in the league.

Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Taurean Prince are both 6-7, and Prince has about 10 pounds on the Frenchman. TLC is being asked to line up on the wing, while Prince is playing down low with some of the biggest guys in the league. The “taller players” on the Nets include 76-year-old Jeff Green, an injured second-year player in Nic Claxton, a second-round rookie in Reggie Perry, and a wing in Rodions Kurucs who plays more like a guard. Allen and Jordan can only do so much, and opponents are taking advantage of this roster flaw by feasting on their smaller lineups.

Allen and Jordan have been asked to rebound and play tough defense. Box scores and advanced metrics show they have done an exemplary job of that. However, the Nets’ lack of size has plagued them for years, and it’s their lack of depth on the interior that has made them one of the most porous defenses in the league. This is a problem that Marks needs to solve, not Nash.

Nets: 3 players who must produce more with Kevin Durant out

In what will undoubtedly be a pivotal stretch for Steve Nash and the Nets, these three secondary and tertiary studs need to lock in