In the 2019 offseason, Durant, who won two FMVP but was not recognized, and Irving, who was not the boss of the team, two frustrated people decided to form their own championship lineup and join forces to win a championship to prove themselves again. But when they recovered, even if the two joined forces, it did not help the Nets to play a dominant role in the opening stages of the 20-21 season.
So in the case that Harden is bent on joining forces with Durant and pursuing the championship, the Nets management has successfully won Harden through a multi-party transaction - no payment to Durant or Irving, and formed a competitive "super big three combination".
20-21 season: The Big Three were good enough individually, but stopped in the second round of the playoffs?
Originally, before Harden joined the Nets, with durant + Irving's offensive firepower and superstardom, they could only be regarded as an ordinary championship team. After all, at that time, the Lakers' "James + thick eyebrows", the Clippers' "Leonard + George", the Bucks' "Alphabet Brother + Middleton + Holliday", the Heat's "Butler + Adebayo" and other combinations, the combined power is not weaker than Durant + Irving.
The addition of Harden is like helping the Nets "open and hang" - directly helping them improve their strength out of thin air. So even if Durant was absent for a long time in the 20-21 season and Irving was "absent" from time to time, with Harden's blessing, the Nets were still able to achieve the top two in the East that season.
Even if the Nets big three lack training and don't have enough time to adapt to each other, they can still play dominance and chemistry in the playoffs...
In the first round of the playoffs in 21 years, the big three, which originally did not have much running time, did not play 1+1+1 less than 3 because of personal playing style, chemical reactions, etc. On the contrary, in the first series of the big three, they almost all played to their strengths.
Ha's average score of 27.8 points, 7.2 boards, 10.6 assists, 55% shooting percentage performance, not only score efficiently, but also comb the team's offense in order; Durant, as the team's boss and strongest firepower point, can contribute 32.6 points, 7.4 boards, 3.0 assists, 56.2% shooting percentage per game; Irving, although a slight decline compared to the regular season, he still has 23.8 points, 6.5 boards, 5.4 assists, 48.9% shooting rate of efficient performance.
However, with the second round of the Nets vs Bucks series, due to Harden's hamstring strain and Irving being padded, in the end, even if Durant's "single core" exploded against the sky with 35.4 points, 10.7 boards, 5.4 assists, and 50.9% shooting percentage, it did not change the fate of the Nets being eliminated by the Bucks in the second round...
Last season, the nets' big three personal performances were actually outstanding. Harry averaged 24.6 points, 7.9 boards, 10.8 assists, 46.6% shooting percentage, Durant averaged 26.9 points, 7.1 boards and 5.6 assists per game, 53.7% shooting percentage, and Irving played the highest efficiency of his career, averaging 26.9 points per game, 4.8 boards and 6.0 assists, 50.6% shooting rate + 40.2% three-point shooting.
So why did the Big Three do so well, but the Nets didn't get anything out of the playoffs last year?
Leaving aside Nash's coaching ability and the nets' flaws in the lineup, in fact, last year, in the case of the three giants' respective performances, the main reason why the Nets did nothing in the playoffs was because of the "butterfly effect" caused by injuries, resulting in them always falling into the predicament of 3 lacking 1.5.
Durant, who had just recovered from an Achilles tendon injury at first, was used for a long time and with high intensity by Nash, and eventually had to miss the game due to a hamstring strain. In the case of Durant's long absence + Irving's "absence" from time to time, the team's record at that time was completely pressed on Harden alone. In particular, Nash still ignores it in order to stabilize the team's record - the long, high-intensity use of Harden eventually caused Harden to strain his hamstring at the end of the season...
Judging from the situation at the time, if Irving could stabilize the game, or If Durant had not been injured, Harden would not have had to make a big deal; he might not have even strained the hamstring at the end of the season due to excessive fatigue, nor would he have strained the hamstring in the second round.
And if Harden hadn't frequently strained his hamstring because of overdraft; then in fact, even if Irving was still injured by his feet in the second round of the playoffs, with the combination of "Peak Harden + Durant", the Bucks would not have a chance to beat the Nets in the series.
21-22 season: Durant retired from injury, Irving "part-time", Harden once again carried the team
After the start of the new season, Irving was "banned" by the Nets for more than half a season due to refusing vaccines; Harden struggled quite hard in the new season because of the impact of last season's "hamstring strain + new rules of the league". At this time, Nash, in order to stabilize the team's record, in order to stabilize his coaching position, returned to the high-intensity, long-term use of Durant last season...
In the end, Durant played a better performance than last season when Irving could not play and Harden declined - averaging 29.3 points, 7.4 boards, 5.8 assists per game, a super performance of 52.1% shooting, and once led the Nets to stabilize the first record in the East. However, the over-consumed Durant is still plagued by injuries, and he was injured again in mid-January...
Although Irving was not "approved to return" until the beginning of January, his absence for more than a month did not make him in a slump, and after his comeback, he was still able to contribute 23.4 points, 4.9 boards, 5.1 assists, and 50.4% shooting. Unfortunately, Irving is still unable to play at home or in away games with strict epidemic regulations.
That is to say, when Durant once again injured and Irving appeared as a "part-time player", now the Nets want to stabilize the record, or rely on Harden's play.
Nets vs Lakers: Facing the Lakers Big Three with 1+1+1 less than 3, Harden can't win with 33+12+11?
In the recent Nets vs Lakers game, although Durant and Irving are absent at the same time, but in terms of the current state of the Lakers losing more and winning less - in fact, even if it is a return, the Nets may not have a chance to win this game (as long as Harden does not pull the crotch). After all, even if the Big Three were present at the same time, the Lakers did not play a dominant force, and even lost to the league's "weak brigade" team.
In the Nets vs Lakers game, although the thick eyebrow defense state is good, but his offensive state that has just returned is indeed average, coupled with Wei Shao's undercover performance (5 mistakes); it can be said that the Lakers' big three in this game are combined, but the strength they can play is still 1+1+1 less than 3.
I thought that in this way, the Nets would have a very good chance of winning. Who ever thought that even if Harden shot 11 of 24 in a single game, crazy cut 33 points, 12 boards and 11 assists of the triple-double data, in the end the Nets could not win the game.
Although the reason why the Nets lost to the Lakers 96-106 has a lot to do with James's super play - 33 points, 7 boards and 6 assists, but in essence, it is because the Nets have no stable and reliable scoring points except Harden (except for Harden, Mills, and Bembry, none of the Nets scored in double figures).
When Durant retired from injury and Irving "worked part-time", the Nets or missed the championship again
From the current situation, when Durant is once again plagued by injuries and Irving's "part-time" absences from time to time, Harden has to become the Nets' "thigh" again. But this year's Harden is no better than last year's Harden, this year under the influence of "injury + new regulations", Harden is not in good shape, and will no longer return to the state when he won 30+ points in a row.
Now wanting Harden to carry the team again is bound to make him pay more energy. Even if Durant's absence and Irving's "part-time" situation continues, Harden is likely to be injured again due to overexpending...
In summary, in the 20-21 season, Durant was injured due to overdraft, and Irving was "absent" from time to time, resulting in Harden having to overdraft himself in advance to protect the team's record. And this year, under durant's injury and Irving's "part-time" situation, Harden seems to be in the same situation again.
If Harden selectively plays in order to retain his physical strength and strength, the Nets' record will surely decline further; but if it is to play at full strength again, or even overdraft in advance, then Harden is likely to be injured again. It can be said that when Durant retired from injury and Irving "worked part-time", the Nets today may repeat the same mistakes at any time as long as they are not careful, fall into a place of perdition, and once again miss the championship...