The Brooklyn Nets are expected to make the NBA Finals to represent the East this year because they have the most talented roster in the league. The Nets should be NBA champions already if not for the injuries suffered to Harden and Irving. Nonetheless, they will be back with a vengeance next year.
- Kyrie Irving vs. LeBron James 3-10 Record
- James Harden vs. Andre Iguodala 14-30 Record
- Kevin Durant vs. Carmelo Anthony 4-13 Record
- Blake Griffin vs. Al Horford 1-12 Record
- DeAndre Jordan vs. Joel Embiid 1-7 Record
- Joe Harris vs. Norman Powell 0-16 Record
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When looking at Brooklyn’s starting lineup, each player has been an All-Star and franchise player at some point during their career. But that doesn’t mean they were unbeatable, whether in the past or in the present. It is time to uncover the players the Nets starters have the worst career record (minimum of 10 games played against each opponent) by taking into account regular-season and playoff matchups.
As great as Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving are; they have suffered major defeats to players that are their “Kryptonites”. Here are the record of the Nets starters and 6th man against their biggest rivals on the court.
Kyrie Irving vs. LeBron James 3-10 Record
Former teammates of each other, Kyrie Irving and LeBron James have had some interesting battles against each other. Kyrie and LeBron will always be linked together after winning the 2016 NBA championship, so seeing how the latter comes out victorious in matchups against each other is very fitting.
LeBron was at his usual superstar level against Irving, putting up averages of 26.2 PPG, 8.2 RPG, and 8.2 APG. The King was a bit loose with the ball as well, turning the ball over 3.2 times over 13 games. But it is clear LeBron had more success against Kyrie than Irving had against The King since 10 out of 13 games have gone LeBron’s way. Irving’s average of 18.7 PPG pales in comparison to LeBron’s production in these meetings.
James Harden vs. Andre Iguodala 14-30 Record
James Harden is one of the best isolation scorers in NBA history, and it is often hard to slow him down when he gets ahead of steam. The Beard has somehow had little success against Andre Iguodala, mainly because the latter played for a Golden State Warriors super team.
Harden has averages of 25.8 PPG, 6.2 RPG, and 6.4 APG which includes a monster 45-point victory against Iguodala and the Warriors. It is clear Harden was a better player in these showdowns against Iguodala (11.1 PPG and 4.7 RPG), although the latter had the last laugh by winning a Finals MVP to Harden’s none.
Kevin Durant vs. Carmelo Anthony 4-13 Record
Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony are two of the greatest scoring forwards in NBA history, and each goes about it in their own way. Durant uses his length to shoot over defenders and is very proficient from three, while Anthony has the strength to score inside from post-ups.
Throughout the career of Kevin Durant, he has been on the losing end of battles with Carmelo. Durant has averages of 28.2 PPG and 6.7 RPG, compared to Anthony’s averages of 25.0 PPG and 6.4 RPG. Durant’s career-high against Anthony is 41 points while Carmelo has a career-high of 38 points. The bulk of Anthony’s wins came with Denver and New York when Durant was in Oklahoma City.
Blake Griffin vs. Al Horford 1-12 Record
Blake Griffin is currently past his prime and is reserved to being a role player, but he was an All-Star earlier on in his career. Even when Griffin was in his prime, he had a tendency to struggle against proficient defenders who limited the space around the rim for Blake.
Griffin struggled to get wins against Al Horford, despite averaging 20.8 PPG and 8.8 RPG compared to Horford’s averages of 12.8 PPG and 8.2 RPG. Horford seemed to neutralize Griffin’s impact enough to get victories, mainly as a member of the Atlanta Hawks and Boston Celtics.
DeAndre Jordan vs. Joel Embiid 1-7 Record
DeAndre Jordan can be an offensive liability, although he was one of the best defensive centers in the league in his prime. Jordan only managed 8.3 PPG and 10.8 RPG against Embiid, his biggest kryptonite.
Embiid had monster averages of 30.4 PPG, 13.5 RPG, and 1.4 BPG. Embiid is usually unstoppable against most centers, and even Jordan’s defensive prowess couldn’t slow him down. Jordan did manage a high of 21 rebounds, but Embiid has his own high of 39 points.
Joe Harris vs. Norman Powell 0-16 Record
Joe Harris is one of the best three-point shooters in the NBA, averaging a career 43.8% from deep. That number dipped slightly to 40.2% during this year’s postseason, and he missed a lot of shots that he should have made. But throughout his career, Harris has faced problems against Norman Powell.
Powell is an excellent defender who can hit the three as well, averaging 37.7% from deep. Powell is a much better defender than Harris and did enough to help his team generate wins against the sharpshooter. As a member of the Cavaliers and Nets, Harris has a putrid 0-16 record against the 6’3″ defender.
