Network stars Kyrie Irving and James Harden had a brief conversation in training recently to determine who would be the team’s guard.
“I feel like he’s doing a great job just managing the role of point guard,” said Irving after Brooklyn’s 134-117 victory over the Warriors on Saturday night. “We established that maybe four days ago. I just looked at him and said, ‘You are the point guard and I will play as point guard.’ That was as simple as that. He’s taking control of responsibilities and doing an incredible job. It makes my job easier to just go out and play for free and just make moves. It’s a luxury. I just want to continue. “
Harden, twice a leader in assists, is on his way to leading the league for the third time in that category, leading the league with 11.0 assists per game.
“It’s easy to play against someone who is willing to praise your game and ready to sacrifice, and it’s easier to do that for me,” said Irving. “I think I have been waiting for this opportunity to show that playing with other great players, not just a (Team) USA or All-Star games, but able to fit into a high level group not just with goals or passes, just continuing doing the little things and the details to win. That’s all I’m focused on ”.
This season, Irving was the most lethal scorer ever and averaged his career records in percentage of throws (0.522), percentage of free throws (0.950) and points per game (27.9).
Harden is ninth on the NBA all-time usage percentage rating table (30.58), while Kevin Durant ranks 12th (30.16) and Irving 16th (29.29). However, the three-time NBA scoring leader knew that his score would drop by reaching the Nets and being the main point guard, as he noted in late January.
Harden echoed a similar sentiment after Brooklyn’s victory over the Golden State.
“I came to this team knowing that they have two special scorers on this team,” said Harden. “Obviously, I score when I need to, but as long as I’m involving everyone and Kyrie is getting the shots he wants, KD is getting the shots he wants, it’s very efficient. It seems to work well like that. “
For Irving, this is not the first time that he has played outside the ball and shares the duties of creation. He did it next Lebron James during his time with the Cavaliers. In Cleveland, Irving managed to win a championship alongside James and believes he can win another as part of the talented Brooklyn trio.
“I think this refers to what I said in the past few weeks, I’m just not considering a guaranteed day,” said Irving. “We don’t want to value our greatness in terms of where it is now, and so we want to hold each other accountable for reaching another level in the long run.”
Brooklyn is now the third seed in the East and is behind first place for just 2.5 games.
“I’m just trying to build a little camaraderie and have fun dominating,” said Irving after the Brooklyn trio played only their sixth game together.
On Tuesday, February 9, Irving told the rest of the league what would happen when the Nets collectively turned the corner.
“I’m telling you, the league will be notified when that happens,” said Irving.
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