Nets at Kings 2/2/2022 @ 10:00 pm EST

[MrDollarBills]

The idea that people are blaming Harden for everything and giving Kyrie a pass is crazy.

There is plenty of blame to go around here, but for me the fact that Kyrie isn't all in on winning has hurt this team more than anything else. As soon as he came back we have sucked. His stats mean Jack sh*t if they aren't producing wins.

I guarantee that when the dirt comes out about what is happening behind the scenes, Kyrie's decision to be a part time player will be a huge part of the dysfunction that has destroyed this team

[Sharcm1]

The idea that people are blaming Harden for everything and giving Kyrie a pass is crazy.

There is plenty of blame to go around here, but for me the fact that Kyrie isn't all in on winning has hurt this team more than anything else. As soon as he came back we have sucked. His stats mean Jack sh*t if they aren't producing wins.

I guarantee that when the dirt comes out about what is happening behind the scenes, Kyrie's decision to be a part time player will be a huge part of the dysfunction that has destroyed this team

I agree with what you said but the situation should not effect the way harden plays if he is a professional. We all go through crap in our jobs and still go to work and still do our best. My work ethic is not impacted by my coworkers decisions. Yes it may suck and make my job harder but I’m not packing it in because of their choices. And I realize it’s harder to do in a team sport but in most careers you also rely on others on your “team” to make it work. I just feel like harden has given up on this team. And he has done so from day one of the season. To the point that Reggie Miller had to call him out before a game to get him to play well. But that lasted only a game or two.

What bothers me the most is that he shows he is perfectly capable of still playing like harden and then doesn’t do it consistently. And if that’s a reaction to the Irving situation then it bothers me even more. If he just didn’t have it anymore or was injured or even something in his real life that was effecting his game but for him to just not give effort because of Irving that’s beyond acceptable.

[Sharcm1]

The main problem is that harden has the ball in his hands all the time when on the floor. And you can see from his body language on any given night that the nets will lose that game. Now it’s just more obvious because Durant isn’t there to bail them out. But this has been proven happening all season. There are some games he is engaged and giving effort. But then there are the rest of the games in which he does through the motions. And that’s a lot for other players to overcome when he has the ball for the majority of the possession. Without Durant when harden doesn’t play well the nets lose. Simple fact. Even with Durant it was hard to overcome harden not playing well. And it’s not because the others can’t play well it because he has the ball.

I’ve watched every game every possession. He slows it down too much. He plays like it’s the last minute of the game and their up by 10 and he’s trying to kill clock on almost every possession. It’s a major problem. You see how the ball moves more and play faster when Irving is in charge of the offense. The guys all of a sudden get cuts and open threes etc. I just see lack of effort from harden to do that every game. He also is a liability on the defensive end when often the wide open three in the corner was from a missed rotation by harden. Either to the that open player or the one before. Watch him actually look at him during those defensive sets.

And for me it’s not like he can’t play better that’s the hardest part. He has shown, in games this season, that he can play like the guy he was last season. He wasn’t perfect last year but for most of the games he tried hard. Now it just looks like he doesn’t want to be here and he has given up. Makes me think all the rumors are true.

[MrDollarBills]

The idea that people are blaming Harden for everything and giving Kyrie a pass is crazy.

There is plenty of blame to go around here, but for me the fact that Kyrie isn't all in on winning has hurt this team more than anything else. As soon as he came back we have sucked. His stats mean Jack sh*t if they aren't producing wins.

I guarantee that when the dirt comes out about what is happening behind the scenes, Kyrie's decision to be a part time player will be a huge part of the dysfunction that has destroyed this team

I agree with what you said but the situation should not effect the way harden plays if he is a professional. We all go through crap in our jobs and still go to work and still do our best. My work ethic is not impacted by my coworkers decisions. Yes it may suck and make my job harder but I’m not packing it in because of their choices. And I realize it’s harder to do in a team sport but in most careers you also rely on others on your “team” to make it work. I just feel like harden has given up on this team. And he has done so from day one of the season. To the point that Reggie Miller had to call him out before a game to get him to play well. But that lasted only a game or two.

What bothers me the most is that he shows he is perfectly capable of still playing like harden and then doesn’t do it consistently. And if that’s a reaction to the Irving situation then it bothers me even more. If he just didn’t have it anymore or was injured or even something in his real life that was effecting his game but for him to just not give effort because of Irving that’s beyond acceptable.

I don't think he gave up on day 1. I think early on he was out of shape + the way officials were calling the games were impacting his play. I also think that age is starting to catch up with him because he isn't able to play himself into shape as easily as he did when he was younger.

However, post KD injury, he has absolutely given up. And I'm not giving him a free pass. He should be traded before the deadline. Marks would also be insane to sign him to a 50 mil a year extension when it is clear that his game is not going to age well if he can't stay in shape. It's time to respectfully part ways.

But I understand his frustration as well. Kyrie basically killed this team's chances and then gets in front of the media and starts talking crap about people needing to check their egos. He is absolutely toxic and its not a coincidence that things went downhill after he came back and started integrating himself with the team again. We looked great during Christmas week and all of a sudden things just went to hell.

[MrDollarBills]

The main problem is that harden has the ball in his hands all the time when on the floor. And you can see from his body language on any given night that the nets will lose that game. Now it’s just more obvious because Durant isn’t there to bail them out. But this has been proven happening all season. There are some games he is engaged and giving effort. But then there are the rest of the games in which he does through the motions. And that’s a lot for other players to overcome when he has the ball for the majority of the possession. Without Durant when harden doesn’t play well the nets lose. Simple fact. Even with Durant it was hard to overcome harden not playing well. And it’s not because the others can’t play well it because he has the ball.

I’ve watched every game every possession. He slows it down too much. He plays like it’s the last minute of the game and their up by 10 and he’s trying to kill clock on almost every possession. It’s a major problem. You see how the ball moves more and play faster when Irving is in charge of the offense. The guys all of a sudden get cuts and open threes etc. I just see lack of effort from harden to do that every game. He also is a liability on the defensive end when often the wide open three in the corner was from a missed rotation by harden. Either to the that open player or the one before. Watch him actually look at him during those defensive sets.

And for me it’s not like he can’t play better that’s the hardest part. He has shown, in games this season, that he can play like the guy he was last season. He wasn’t perfect last year but for most of the games he tried hard. Now it just looks like he doesn’t want to be here and he has given up. Makes me think all the rumors are true.

that's my main complaint outside of the horrific defense: Harden does not get us into our sets quickly and the ball is stagnant. He kills the offense

[MGrand15]

I've really held back from criticizing Harden too much because I do feel like a part of this is some of these ridiculous lineups he's played with. Frustration has spilled over. Harden has always played with good spacing - and we were supposed to take that to another level. This year he's been playing with the worst spacing IN THE LEAGUE. Marks standing pat and letting this fall apart basically was a devastating decision.

On the other hand, I do think his numbers (this year) overrate his impact. Harden is an offensive genius - so he's gonna get his stat wise. He's gonna get assists. He'll find a way to be efficient and get buckets. But he also has the ball in his hands A TON. Turns it over in back breaking ways A LOT. He offers nothing off the ball. His defensive effort has been A LOT worse than last year. He came into the year out of shape period - and it really hurt him on that end. The hamstring is zero excuse to come in overweight. Even if he couldn't run or play basketball - at that point, it's all about diet. That's a failure on him and the organization. How are you gonna let someone coming back from injury also carry extra weight? And play them a ton of minutes in the process?

I think last year there were a lot of question marks about whether you could win playing "Harden ball". He was determined to change that narrative. He moved the ball, picked his spots, played harder defensively. This year he slipped back into bad habits. He looks like the Harden from the Rockets who started last season.

[LOUiS-D]

that's my main complaint outside of the horrific defense: Harden does not get us into our sets quickly and the ball is stagnant. He kills the offense

Nash is our coach.... 7 seconds or less, 2 time mvp, suns point guard, Steve Nash. We don't get it over half court in 7 seconds or less, and when we do we fking annihilate defenses, before they get a chance to load up on our stars. Reduce the minutes, increase the pace.

[Prokorov]

I don't know.

I still blame Harden more than Kyrie. Even though I blame them both.

Kyrie on the court has still been very good for the most part.

Harden has just been trash. For no reason.

Eventually Kyrie will be able to play full time. What about Harden? Will he ever be good again?

The question is when Kyrie will be able to play full time. Our only hope is mandate gets lifted. What if not? Then Kyrie will be able to play full time next year maybe? KD will be one year older.

Harden with the right attitude, motivation and system(shooters & rolling big) is still very good, maybe not last year's good, but about 80-90%.

Last night's Harden was the Houston Harden before the trade who did not want to compete at all. His effort level was all time low. Harden on one leg in the playoff can still give you more than 4 pts. He did not even want to try last night. (Nash should have sit him).

Anyways, we are going through one of the toughest if not the toughest times during the big 3 era. I hope we hang on in there. Donot let what you see on the court cloud your judgement. Especially the talk of Ben Simmons and Harden trade, Ben would not be playable in the playoffs at crunch times. It would be so easy to game plan us if Ben was on this team. Hack a Simmons was basically how Hawks won that series being down 2-3. Not only does he not have a jumper but he shoots lower than 50% in free throws. Of course, we can flip Simmons for someone lese but there is a reason no contender wants to trade for him other than the likes of Kings etc.

It was not an effort problem. it was a health and stamina problem. He shouldnt be playing the second of a back to back when he sat out 3 games ago with a hammy and 2 games ago with hand issue.

He needs to rest. we arent winnign with him playing through it anyhow. playoffs is one thing, he needs rest

[Prokorov]

that's my main complaint outside of the horrific defense: Harden does not get us into our sets quickly and the ball is stagnant. He kills the offense

Nash is our coach.... 7 seconds or less, 2 time mvp, suns point guard, Steve Nash. We don't get it over half court in 7 seconds or less, and when we do we fking annihilate defenses, before they get a chance to load up on our stars. Reduce the minutes, increase the pace.

This is a good point. when we dont walk it up, we thrive

[Hello Brooklyn]

The fact that there doesn't seem to be any pressure on Nash is an institutional failure.

I really believe Marks is not even considering firing Nash. And blaming all our problems on injuries.

Marks did a great job of building a team. But he put his clueless friend in charge.

Its like drawing a beautiful painting. And then pissing in it at the end. What is the point?

You ruined any shot we had with your stupid decision making.

[Prokorov]

The fact that there doesn't seem to be any pressure on Nash is an institutional failure.

I really believe Marks is not even considering firing Nash. And blaming all our problems on injuries.

Marks did a great job of building a team. But he put his clueless friend in charge.

Its like drawing a beautiful painting. And then pissing in it at the end. What is the point?

You ruined any shot we had with your stupid decision making.

The lack of urgency to add a fringe player or two via trade is also frustrating. he still has 6 days, but i mean, we could have used that during this stretch

[Hello Brooklyn]

The fact that there doesn't seem to be any pressure on Nash is an institutional failure.

I really believe Marks is not even considering firing Nash. And blaming all our problems on injuries.

Marks did a great job of building a team. But he put his clueless friend in charge.

Its like drawing a beautiful painting. And then pissing in it at the end. What is the point?

You ruined any shot we had with your stupid decision making.

The lack of urgency to add a fringe player or two via trade is also frustrating. he still has 6 days, but i mean, we could have used that during this stretch

I think hes waiting for buyout.

Not much we can really add trade wise.

[MrDollarBills]

The fact that there doesn't seem to be any pressure on Nash is an institutional failure.

I really believe Marks is not even considering firing Nash. And blaming all our problems on injuries.

Marks did a great job of building a team. But he put his clueless friend in charge.

Its like drawing a beautiful painting. And then pissing in it at the end. What is the point?

You ruined any shot we had with your stupid decision making.

perfect analogy. Marks built this house from scratch, and he literally just set it on fire.

[Jay555]

The fact that there doesn't seem to be any pressure on Nash is an institutional failure.

I really believe Marks is not even considering firing Nash. And blaming all our problems on injuries.

Marks did a great job of building a team. But he put his clueless friend in charge.

Its like drawing a beautiful painting. And then pissing in it at the end. What is the point?

You ruined any shot we had with your stupid decision making.

4 more losses to make it 10 losses in a row and see if he budges.

If not, Tsai should send both Nash and Marks packing.

[Jay555]

The fact that there doesn't seem to be any pressure on Nash is an institutional failure.

I really believe Marks is not even considering firing Nash. And blaming all our problems on injuries.

Marks did a great job of building a team. But he put his clueless friend in charge.

Its like drawing a beautiful painting. And then pissing in it at the end. What is the point?

You ruined any shot we had with your stupid decision making.

The lack of urgency to add a fringe player or two via trade is also frustrating. he still has 6 days, but i mean, we could have used that during this stretch

I think hes waiting for buyout.

Not much we can really add trade wise.

This is going to be a tough. Those candidates would want to choose contenders who are winning. I remember last year Aldridge chose us over Heat because Heat were having a losing streak. We literally have the longest losing streak in the league atm and the fact that our internal issues are still there, who the **** wanna join this **** show?

We are super cursed and it’s not funny.

[Hello Brooklyn]

The lack of urgency to add a fringe player or two via trade is also frustrating. he still has 6 days, but i mean, we could have used that during this stretch

I think hes waiting for buyout.

Not much we can really add trade wise.

This is going to be a tough. Those candidates would want to choose contenders who are winning. I remember last year Aldridge chose us over Heat because Heat were having a losing streak. We literally have the longest losing streak in the league atm and the fact that our internal issues are still there, who the **** wanna join this **** show?

We are super cursed and it’s not funny.

I don't really buy that.

Aldridge chose us cause he wanted to play with KD.

Buyout guys will also get more playing time here than for the Heat.

I think we could get somebody pretty good.

[Lamak]

The main problem is that harden has the ball in his hands all the time when on the floor. And you can see from his body language on any given night that the nets will lose that game. Now it’s just more obvious because Durant isn’t there to bail them out. But this has been proven happening all season. There are some games he is engaged and giving effort. But then there are the rest of the games in which he does through the motions. And that’s a lot for other players to overcome when he has the ball for the majority of the possession. Without Durant when harden doesn’t play well the nets lose. Simple fact. Even with Durant it was hard to overcome harden not playing well. And it’s not because the others can’t play well it because he has the ball.

I’ve watched every game every possession. He slows it down too much. He plays like it’s the last minute of the game and their up by 10 and he’s trying to kill clock on almost every possession. It’s a major problem. You see how the ball moves more and play faster when Irving is in charge of the offense. The guys all of a sudden get cuts and open threes etc. I just see lack of effort from harden to do that every game. He also is a liability on the defensive end when often the wide open three in the corner was from a missed rotation by harden. Either to the that open player or the one before. Watch him actually look at him during those defensive sets.

And for me it’s not like he can’t play better that’s the hardest part. He has shown, in games this season, that he can play like the guy he was last season. He wasn’t perfect last year but for most of the games he tried hard. Now it just looks like he doesn’t want to be here and he has given up. Makes me think all the rumors are true.

Pretty much this. Not sure when the chemistry soured this bad, but it does seem like he doesn't seem interested in being a part of the team long term. His play style has definitely clashed with the offense, definitely has slowed the ball down. Kyrie and Durant also clash the offense but atleast their scoring is efficient. Nash deserves some blame for this situation as well. Not sure why we are going to trade him this quick when we gave up so much unless they are certain he wont resign and they dont want him to walk.