Brooklyn Nets: Projecting 3 best lineups if team ends up signing Blake Griffin

The Brooklyn Nets head into the All-Star Break as the No. 2 seed in the East, a position they’ve held for the better part of three weeks.

While they haven’t been able to leapfrog the 76ers for the top spot, we like to think they’ll eventually get over the hump. After all, they currently own the third-best record in the NBA despite Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving playing just seven games together.

It goes without saying that the Nets are going to need to add depth in the frontcourt if they have any hope of fulfilling their championship aspirations, and the latest reports confirm the front office is fully aware of what is presently the team’s most glaring weakness.

Per several insiders, Brooklyn is considered the frontrunner to sign Blake Griffin, who has multiple contenders vying for his services, after he agreed to a buyout with the Pistons.

Fans are understandably concerned about how Griffin’s out-dated style of play would fit in the Nets’ free-flowing offense, so let’s attempt to highlight the three best lineups Steve Nash could deploy if they were to sign the 31-year-old veteran.

How should the Nets utilize Blake Griffin if they end up signing him?

3. Space the Floor

The Nets’ league-leading offense clearly doesn’t need to be tweaked, but it could become even more deadly if they decided to go with an all-out assault from beyond the arc.

If you’re picking up what we’re putting down, Brooklyn could deploy a lineup featuring Harden running the point, Landry Shamet and Joe Harris waiting for catch-and-shoot opportunities on the perimeter, Durant at the four wreaking havoc and Griffin at the five to offer even more spacing.

Griffin has been trying to improve his 3-point shooting and we’ve seen him make significant strides in that department compared to the early stages of his career. He’s shooting just 31.5% on threes this year, but that can be attributed to him forcing up shots on a woeful Pistons offense.

By no means is this a foolproof lineup, but if Griffin finds the stroke we could be looking at a virtually unstoppable offense with Harden commanding multiple defenders by driving.

2. Small-Ball Lineup

The Nets have gotten away from their fan favorite small-ball lineup in light of injuries to Durant (hamstring) and Jeff Green (shoulder), but we see no reason as to why it wouldn’t return once the duo re-enters the fold. After all, it was working wonders before both players went down.

If Griffin was to enter the equation, we would love to see a lineup of Irving, Harden, Harris and Durant and Griffin (in place of Green) manning the frontcourt.

Griffin and Green admittedly bring different intangibles to the table, so the effectiveness of this rotation will be heavily dependent on Griffin’s motor on both ends of the floor. Seeing as though the six-time All-Star only appeared in 20 games in the first half of the season, he should have fresh legs underneath him.

1. Second Unit Alongside Nicolas Claxton

Being as inexperienced as Nash is, it would be totally understandable if he opted against tampering with the rotation and just deployed Griffin in his usual power forward spot with the second unit, which has surprisingly proven to be effective following the Harden trade.

This would still technically qualify as an experiment, as Griffin’s ability to space the floor would clear things up for Nicolas Claxton, who has really impressed following his return from injury, to go to work in the paint.

Griffin offers next to nothing on the defensive end of the floor these days, but as long as he rebounds at an efficient level, he and Claxton could give Brooklyn their own version of the twin towers on the second unit, which was nowhere to be found while Claxton was still rehabbing.

We’re not totally on board with the Nets pursuing Griffin given his lengthy injury history and regression over the last two seasons, but the potential benefits of adding him to their extremely thin rotation cannot be understated.

Nevertheless, it’s looking like Brooklyn is leading the race to land his signature, so fans might as well start envisioning how he would work alongside the likes of Durant, Harden and Irving.

Grading the Brooklyn Nets heading into the All-Star Break

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