On January 6, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continued, and in a game that has ended, the Nets defeated the Pacers 129-121 to end a three-game losing streak. Although it was another "ugly victory", this game was really too crucial for the Nets, first of all, they avoided four consecutive losses, and secondly, this is Irving's debut after returning from the regular season, if the loss will be a double blow for them, and the final win will be happy. But then the Nets will have a devil's schedule, they will play five games in 7 days, and will meet the East's sworn enemies twice.
From This Saturday to next Friday, Beijing time, the Nets will play five games against the Bucks, Spurs, Trail Blazers, Bulls and Thunder in 7 days, which is a very big challenge for the physical fitness of the Nets players. Second, the Nets have not won against the top four teams in the East and West so far this season, after losing to the Bucks in the season opener and having suffered a double kill with the Bulls, and now facing these two sworn opponents in the East, the Nets must take this strong opponent if they want to prove that they have the ability to compete for the championship. But judging from the nets' current state, this wave of devil schedules is down, and it is difficult for them to retreat.
In a three-game losing streak before today, the Nets were almost unable to fight back against the 76ers and the Grizzlies, even against the Clippers, who were absent without Kacho, and even with head coach Tyronn Lu. In today's victory over the Pacers, they did not play well with Irving's return, and they were 19 points behind the Pacers at one point in the game, and if they had not woken up in time in the fourth quarter, they would probably have suffered four consecutive losses. You know, so far this season, the Pacers are only third to last in the East, and they can still play well against the Nets, who have long expressed their willingness to trade all the main forces.
In addition to facing the Bucks and Bulls, even for teams of the spurs, trail blazers and thunder, the Nets dare not say that they will win. On top of that, in addition to the Devils' schedule, the Nets have even worse news, which is that in the next game against the Bucks, the Nets play at home, which means that Irving, who has just returned to make his debut, cannot play in this game. Irving's return is a joy, but in the next home game, the Nets must learn how to play without Irving, so far this season the Nets still have not entered a real championship state, this wave of devil schedule for them is a challenge and opportunity.
If the Nets still can't beat the Bucks and Bulls, then they should think about their goals for this season, after all, such a luxurious lineup, the regular season can not play the desired results, and it is not realistic to want to win the championship in the playoffs. But if the Nets resist the pressure next to defeat the strong opponent, and then with the help of Irving's return, they are likely to complete the transformation like the second half of last season, and truly become a top team at the championship level. The next wave of schedule, head coach Nash and the Nets will have to deal with it, which will be a big test for them in the regular season.