National Basketball Association

Was the Brooklyn Nets' early playoff exit actually good for the NBA?

Published Jun. 22, 2021 8:46 p.m. ET

One of the biggest shifts of power in recent NBA history occurred on Jan. 13, 2021.

The Brooklyn Nets, sitting at 7-6 to start the season and with the status of star Kyrie Irving uncertain, pulled off a blockbuster.

After weeks of speculation ⁠— not to mention some clear frustration on the part of James Harden – the Nets struck a deal with the Houston Rockets to bring the three-time scoring champion to the Big Apple.

Just like that, the Nets boasted a starting lineup with Kevin Durant, Irving and Harden ⁠— a bona fide "Big 3."

Irving's status and standing with the team were in flux early in the season, but the thinking was that he would eventually be back in the fold.

Needless to say, expectations for the Nets were high at the time.

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The NBA has had its fair share of superteams ⁠— the 2007-08 Boston Celtics, 2010-11 Miami Heat and 2018-19 Golden State Warriors are more recent examples ⁠— but none boasted quite the firepower of the 2020-21 Nets. That's what you get with Harden and Durant on the same squad.

In fact, either Durant or Harden has won the NBA's scoring title in seven of the past 12 seasons, and one of the two finished in the top two every year of that stretch until this season, when it was Stephen Curry (32.0) followed by Bradley Beal (31.3).

Add 2016 NBA champion and six-time All-Star Irving to the mix, and you have a potential juggernaut.

But the Nets — and the way they were constructed — soon became a source of division in NBA circles.

On one side, Harden's essentially forcing his way to a title contender was viewed as a boon for players taking control of their fates.

On the other, the Nets and their "Big 3" were sullying the competitive balance of the game, "buying" their way to a ring rather than "earning" it by growing the team organically. They were cast as the new villains of the NBA.

But with all the ups and downs of an injury-plagued inaugural season, Brooklyn's "Big 3" ultimately fell short in six games against the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Considering Brooklyn's polarizing status among the NBA world, it's not surprising that their early dismissal was a source of discussion on "Speak For Yourself."

The question posed to Marcellus Wiley and Emmanuel Acho: Was Brooklyn losing good or bad for the NBA?

To Acho, the Nets' bowing out protects the integrity of the league and the regular season.

"If you can throw the Nets together ⁠— they only play eight games together ⁠— and instantly win a chip? Of course, they're going to at least go back [to the Finals] next year," Acho explained. But with the Nets' loss, "the integrity of the sport is still maintained."

Emmanuel Acho: The Nets' loss is good for the integrity of the NBA | SPEAK FOR YOURSELF

Hear why Emmanuel Acho believes the Nets' loss promotes integrity and hard work by the smaller NBA franchises.

Wiley disagreed, however, and the absence of megastars was one of the factors Wiley cited in his explanation.

"We lost star power," Wiley said. "How many signature shoes we got left ⁠— and don't count Giannis. … Put it this way: My son watches all these games, and he ain't gonna want none of them shoes. That's the problem."

No matter which side of the coin NBA observers choose, this is likely a debate that will carry into the next season, at least.

As of now, Brooklyn's "Big 3" are all on the payroll through 2022-23, which means there's plenty of time to right the wrongs of this year ⁠— or perhaps become a cautionary tale.

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