Although Kevin Durant continues to be absent and Ben Simmons has not yet returned, the Brooklyn Nets' away game against the Milwaukee Bucks has attracted a lot of attention. On the one hand, the opponent is the defending champion, and the Bucks eliminated the Nets in the Eastern Conference semifinals last season, and the "alphabet brother" Giannis Antetokounmpo stepped on Kevin Irving, resulting in the latter's early reimbursement, which also changed the trend and results of that series to a certain extent.
Against the Bucks this time, Irving also used practical actions to complete revenge, he efficiently cut 38 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, leading the Nets to defeat the opponent on the road. Of course, relying on his strength alone, the Nets may not be able to retreat completely. As a starting center, Andre Drummond continued his excellent performance after joining the Nets, he cut a double-double of 17 points and 12 rebounds, in addition to five assists, and the plus-minus also reached +20 points. So in this game, Drummond's rebounding and plus-minus statistics are the highest of all the players on both teams, and even the number of assists is tied with Kelly Irving, ranking first in the team.
Drummond began his career with the Detroit Pistons as a lottery-turned-center who was once a top blue-collar worker, although he failed to cash in on his full talent. Since the second year of his career, Drummond has won two-doubles for six consecutive seasons, becoming the league's rebounding champion in numbers and even being selected as an All-Star at his peak. However, as the times progressed, the importance of traditional centers became less and less important, and before the 19-20 season deadline, the Detroit Pistons sent Drummond to the Cavaliers, and they only got a second-round pick. The former All-Star center only let the original team get such a return, it can really be said to be a bargain.
Of course, there is another reason, that is, Drummond is in a contract year, and many teams do not dare to bear the risk of paying a lot of assets, but only get drummond's half-year use rights. After joining the Cavaliers, Drummond performed quite well, averaging 17.5 points and 11.1 rebounds per game, but the league was stopped that year, and the team that determined that it did not qualify for the playoffs simply took an early vacation, so Drummond only played 8 games for the Cavaliers. In the first half of last season, he also performed well, Drummond averaged 17.5 points and 13.5 rebounds per game, but due to the reconstruction stage, the data was somewhat watery, coupled with the Cavaliers' interior position was overcrowded, at that time, the team already had Kevin Lefour, Jarrett Allen, Larry Nance Jr. and Haltenstein, etc., so they directly reached a buyout agreement with Drummond.
Seeing the big center become a free agent, many giants threw olive branches at him, and finally Drummond joined the Los Angeles Lakers with a base salary. His idea is very simple, the Lakers as a defending champion, the paper lineup is not bad, and has a high popularity and attention, as long as they play an excellent performance, the team's record is also good, you can completely fight for a generous contract again on this opportunity. As a result, Drummond's wishful thinking was completely frustrated, although he averaged 11.9 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, but during the Lakers' performance, Drummond was often targeted and criticized by the media, coupled with the Lakers' injury, the first round of the playoffs was eliminated, and the Lakers also made it clear that they would not renew their contract with Drummond.
Obviously, this failed experience affected Drummond's market situation, and it is reasonable to say that he is still in the current year, but most teams are not much interested in him. In the end, Drummond signed a basic salary contract with the Philadelphia 76ers, although the gap is a bit large, but it is better than no ball to play. So in the first half of the season, he has been the main substitute behind Embiid, and his performance is decent, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he is the best backup center in the league.
However, in the final minutes of the deadline, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Brooklyn Nets finally agreed, and in order to get Harden, the 76ers packed Andre Drummond with Ben Simmons, Seth Curry and two first-round picks to the Nets. However, from a personal development point of view, Drummond is a blessing in disguise, because the Nets' internal strength is indeed very general, he has sat in the main position after joining, and in the 5 games he played, Drummond has scored in double figures in 4 of them, and has also won two double-doubles twice.
We all know that since sending away Jarrett Allen last season, the Nets' inner strength has not been as good as before, and the youngster Nicholas Clarkston is athletic, especially good at eating under the basket, but is unlikely to become the patron saint of the interior in a short period of time; and Blake Griffin and Lamarcus Aldridge have spent most of their careers as big forwards, and they are indeed older, or it is more appropriate as a substitute interior line. Drummond's arrival has given the Nets a pure interior line that combines height, confrontation and athleticism, and he can not only eat cake on the offensive end, but also has excellent defensive and rebounding protection, which will also greatly benefit the Nets.