Nash cools expectations after Nets’ first defeat
CHARLOTTE • Brooklyn Nets rookie head coach Steve Nash has a message to the critics: Cool it with the expectations.
With Kevin Durant back on the court after 18 months and playing in tandem with fellow All-Star Kyrie Irving, many experts have tipped the National Basketball Association (NBA) team as a championship contender.
The hype built up after they won their first two regular-season games by at least 20 points, the first team since the 2008-09 Los Angeles Lakers to do so.
But Nash claimed the Nets, who have never won the NBA title, were given a reminder that it is still early days after their comeback from a 16-point deficit fell short in a 106-104 loss at the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday.
Durant and Irving put together another dynamic scoring display with 29 and 25 points respectively but it was not enough to overcome the hosts.
Charlotte, who last qualified for the post-season in 2015-16, were paced by 28 points from close-season acquisition Gordon Hayward.
Nash aims to take the lesson on board.
“It’s a long season and a long process, less than 30 days in here,” the 46-year-old said. “We’re still trying to find ourselves and figure out who we are. They’ve (Durant and Irving) been exceptional thus far with their effort, their engagement.
“Tonight, was a little bit of a letdown but that’s going to happen.
“When you’re playing basketball, you can’t be perfect every time.”
Still there are plenty of positives to take, with Durant and Irving the first duo in Nets history to score at least 20 points in each of the team’s first three games.
The more time Durant spends on court, the more he is getting up to speed, so much so that he feels ready to play “back-to-backs”.
The forward believes the Charlotte upset is beneficial for the team’s mentality after he missed a game-tying fadeaway with seven seconds remaining.
“I thought it was going in,” Durant said. “It looked good when it left my hands. I’m sure we’ll get that situation back again throughout the season and I can capitalise on it again. It was good to play in a fourth-quarter game again. Play a game that we had to, you know, fight uphill and claw back to get back into the game.”
The only concern for Brooklyn was a third-quarter injury to starting guard Spencer Dinwiddie. The Nets said he suffered a knee strain but teammate Jarrett Allen is hoping he will not be out for long.
“When Spencer is going, he can’t be stopped,” the centre said. “Even off the court, everyone loves having Spencer around. His energy, just his personality is great in the locker room. I don’t know what’s happening with him… he’s a strong dude – he’ll try and come back as soon as possible.”
REUTERS