Nothin' But Nets
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Brooklyn Nets: 3 non-James Harden reasons BK should be worried

By Adam Weinrib

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - MAY 11: Patrick Williams #44 of the Chicago Bulls fouls Kevin Durant #7 of the Brooklyn Nets as he knocks Durant down at the United Center on May 11, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - MAY 11: Patrick Williams #44 of the Chicago Bulls fouls Kevin Durant #7 of the Brooklyn Nets as he knocks Durant down at the United Center on May 11, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /
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Brooklyn Nets
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – MAY 11: Blake Griffin #2 of the Brooklyn Netslooks to pass under pressure from Daniel Theis #27 of the Chicago Bulls at the United Center on May 11, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. The Nets defeated the Bulls 115-107. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

1. Overreliance on Blake Griffin

When the Brooklyn Nets added Blake Griffin, he was supposed to be a luxury who might be able to drink from the fountain of youth in the borough while surrounded by superstars.

Instead, he’s become a routine 25-minute per game presence over the past several weeks, logging 27 minutes apiece against Milwaukee, Dallas and Denver this past week.

For a player who was famously acquired to be a spice, not the entire dish, and who’s dealt with durability concerns over the past several years (to say the least), should we be worried about how essential Griffin is becoming?

Anything that results in more DeAndre Jordan would be a bad thing for Brooklyn, and we’re worried that the trust factor Griffin brings to the floor will lead to more stress and more minutes for him once the curtain rises on the postseason.

The five-man unit featuring Griffin, Durant, Irving, Harris and Jeff Green has outscored opponents by a remarkable 20.4 points per 100 possessions over the course of the season, though it hasn’t been deployed terribly often. We’d rather see a world in which Steve Nash takes advantage of this unit’s potency in designed stretches of rest time for Harden rather than one in which he makes Griffin a 27-minute-per-contest focal point of his playoff rotations.

The more rest for Griffin the better, considering he’s already shouldered more responsibility than he was brought here to handle.