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KD's ex-Nets' teammate lights it up on ABC'S Dancing with the Stars

 



Iman Shumpert's most dazzling skills might not be on the hardwood with a basketball in hand, but instead on the dance floor with a professional partner to choreograph a number alongside him.

The exceptionally popular Dancing with the Stars is celebrating its 30th season this fall on ABC and Shumpert is among the surprise performances this year.

Over the years, there have been plenty of former athletes, entertainers, and recognizable celebrities who have supremely disappointed and showed no rhythm, pizzazz or showmanship despite being assigned a professional dance partner.

Shumpert's performance speaks for itself, but it clearly caught Kevin Durant's eye. The 2016 NBA champion played in 13 games in 2019 with the Nets while Durant was out with an Achilles injury and played in two games last season in Brooklyn before he was waived by the team.

Durant will be in the hunt for an MVP and Larry O'Brien Trophy, but judging from Shumpert's dancing exhibition, he appears to be in it to win it as well this season.

Kyrie Irving is the reason Kevin Durant is a Net, trading him isn't an option



 Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant were a package deal when signed via free agency in 2019 (Durant via sign-and-trade) as the dynamic duo marked a seminal moment in franchise history.

Irving, a lifelong Nets fan dating back to his childhood days in West Orange, New Jersey and while playing for Montclair Kimberly Academy and St Patrick School, always felt a connection to the New York Metropolitan area and team.

So, when Irving and Durant decided to team up during the 2019 off-season, the destination became clear.

 And while Durant holds the keys to Brooklyn's franchise, it was Irving who convinced the 7-footer to build a new legacy for the Nets in Brooklyn and help bring fans in that borough, New Jersey and Long Island the organization's first NBA championship.

General manager Sean Marks built an enviable culture with enthusiastic, young talent under the tutaledge of a blue collar coach that stressed fundamental play and high effort at all times.

Now, that coach is no longer with the team and many of the young pieces were traded for the third head of this Brooklyn monster in James Harden.

However, to even suggest that Marks would move Irving is total hogwash and both he and true Nets fans know that both players were a package deal and the point guard's connection to the Nets is the reason why Brooklyn has built a modern day superteam.



Kyrie Irving's Twitter beef with reporter takes another wild turn

Kyrie Irving didn't take kindly to recent reports that he will retire if the Nets trade him. According to Nick Wright of FS1, Irving's representation indicated that Brooklyn's floor general will hang up his shoes for good if he's sent packing from the Nets. After that bombshell was dropped, Irving retorted with a puppet meme, challenging the credibility of the said report and reporter himself. After Wright doubled down on his reporting, Irving made yet another puppet reference about the rumor. 

 While it's extremely unlikely that the Nets move Irving after a record-setting season, it's clear that he's fed up with being the media's punching bag and is ready to punch back at criticism he deems unfair and reports he characterizes as bogus.

James Harden still in rehab is a big deal with Nets training camp less than two weeks away




 James Harden was recently practicing and coaching up youth basketball players about the importance of with ethic, but that wasn't the biggest takeaway from that video.

Harden reveals to the young ballers, who he believes are not going at gamespeed, that he is out there pushing himself even though he's still technically in rehab.

Don't discount the importance of this disclosure as Harden reaggravated that same hamstring injury three times last season. 

Brooklyn's training staff was ultra cautious with regards to his return to the court, but evidently Harden's injury never fully healed and resurfaced in Game 1 of the Eastern semifinal round against Milwaukee. The Nets playmaker tried to gut it out in Games 5-7, but was not nearly healthy enough to help Kevin Durant push the team into the conference finals.

With a track record of reaggravating said injury, the Nets medical staff clearly has Harden on a gradual ramp up to get ready in time for training camp.

As the Nets are notoriously tight lipped with regards to injury news, Harden's status for training camp, which opens September 28 in San Diego, is unclear. 

General manager Sean Marks indicated that he was optimistic a contract extension would be reached for both Harden and Kyrie Irving before training camp, but as of this week, nothing has been officially announced.


Kyrie Irving hilariously repudiates report he would retire if traded by Nets



Kyrie Irving's sense of humor is often an underrated part of his mercurial personality. The Nets floor general set the record straight on Wednesday as to what his plan would be in the farfetched scenario he was traded away from Brooklyn.

 Irving was the major ringleader for why Kevin Durant joined him in Brooklyn. A West Orange, New Jersey native, Irving grew up idolizing Jason Kidd as he electrified the Meadowlands in a run that included consecutive trips to the NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003.

The then-New Jersey Nets were beat in the championship round by the Lakers and Spurs, respectively. Irving was merely 11-years old during that improbable era in Nets history and was as heartbroken as any Nets fan.

Now in the borough of Brooklyn and representing the greater New York/New Jersey area, the Nets are still chasing that elusive first NBA championship. 

Upon teaming up with Durant in New York's trendiest borough, Irving insisted that when the Nets get to the finals on his watch, they will be sure to deliver a title. 

Recent reports that the Nets could trade Irving and he would retire in that scenario don't align with any of the rationale that saw Irving choose Brooklyn as his top destination in free agency.

 In the 2019 off-season, Irving recruited a superteam cast to help him achieve a childhood dream now as a professional and deliver the Larry O'Brien to the Nets organization for the first time ever.

Kyrie Irving posts cryptic tweet about masks, but is it about mental health or pandemic?




Kyrie Irving's Twitter fingers are in full force and his latest tweet will be making waves outside of the basketball world.

 Irving has opened up recently about the importance of mental health, but the context of the message relates to "masks" and "no fear."

The cryptic tweet leaves people guessing the true meaning behind the message and perhaps that's the the exact effect the basketball star is hoping to have.

Still in the midst of the pandemic, it's hard to imagine that Irving would take such a strong stance against a deterrent of spreading the virus.

If Irving is using the word "mask" in a metaphorical sense to illustrate people aren't showing their true selves, that's one thing.

If he's urging people to remove masks all together, that a whole other ball of wax.

Whatever the case may be, Irving's latest tweet will stir up controversy in a number of ways .

The NBAPA announced this week that it will not agree with the proposed league mandate to require players to get vaccinated. Approximately 75 NBA players are currently unvaccinated, and in New York and San Francisco, laws prohibit unvaccinated players or personnel from entering arenas or practice facilities, unless they have a religious or medical exemption.

Nets fans are hoping this tweet was merely a poor word choice or perhaps a tasteless message to stir up drama.

If Brooklyn's leader is unvaccinated and without an exemption he would be precluded from playing in homes games and practicing at the team's facility this upcoming season.

The NBA team with highest likelihood of knocking off the Nets isn't who you think it is

 


Forget the Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks, and Los Angeles Clippers, the team that stands between the Brooklyn Nets and a Larry O'Brien Trophy is none other than the Phoenix Suns.

The resigning Western Conference champs are an afterthought in the championship conversation, but with the nucleus of the team returning and valuable championship level experience on their side, Chris Paul and the Suns are more than a formidable foe.

Devin Booker is on the upswing and is a legitimate MVP candidate in the making.

Cam Johnson, Mikal Bridges, DeAndre Ayton Jae Crowder, Cameron Payne and Landry Shamet, who was sent to the Valley of the Sun in exchange for Jevon Carter, are all stellar scoring options for Phoenix.

The Nets have the star power with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Harden and Blake Griffin, but Phoenix has a fearless and seasoned leader in Paul to go along with a fantastic supporting cast.

The Nets are the odds on favorites to take the title, but not enough respect is being given to a Phoenix squad that is not only a viable option to come out of the West, but a team capable of winning the whole shebang.





James Harden gives impassioned speech to young ballers stressing work ethic, preparation




Many NBA fans judge James Harden by his flashy fashion sense, eccentric personality, and on-court histrionics, but very few appreciate the work that man put in to be one of the league's top players. 

Harden's leadership behind the scenes has been a talking point by Nets teammates as he's not only an incredible basketball talent, but a basketball savant. Brooklyn's floor general has incredible court vision, unlimited moves off the dribble in his bag, along with an absurd stepback three that only a handful of players in the NBA can come close to emulating. 

So when Harden had a chance to practice with young up and coming ballers, he didn't mince words when calling out their effort at practice.

Understandably, Harden was heavily criticized for showing up late to Houston Rockets training camp this past season and being physically out of shape and mentally in another place. Even upon his not so subtle trade demand with Brooklyn atop the list, it took Harden several weeks to get into game condition.

Last year's scenario was an outlier in Harden's career as he's been a gamer and hardly missed significant time over the course of his time in the NBA.

Unfortunately, Harden battled a nagging hamstring injury that forced him into two prolonged stints on the injured list. Upon returning in time for the start of the playoffs, he reaggravated the injury, which was only classified as a moderate Grade 2 strain after the Nets were eliminated by Bucks. 

The Nets leader in triple doubles during the regular season with 12 in just 36 regular season games, good enough to tie for the franchise-lead set by Jason Kidd, Harden tried to gut it out in the playoffs, but wasn't nearly himself.

Former Nets and Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni, who coached Harden in both destinations, ravved about the "Beared One's" leadership. It's clear that Harden demands accountability from his teammates and given his stern words of caution to the younger generation of ballers, coaching could be in his future down the road. 

Durant, Harden, Irving-led Nets defeat Jordan, Pippen, Rodman-led Bulls in simulated playoff matchup




Many are anticipating the Brooklyn Nets will have a season of historic proportions, but NBA fans young and old wonder how this Eastern juggernaut would stack up to titans of year's past. 

 Using the WhatIfSports Simulator Engine, Nets Insider was able to pit the 2020-2021 Nets (sorry the 2021-2022 squad isn't available just yet), against the record-setting 72-10, 1995-1996 Bulls squad in a seven-game series. 

 The outcome wasn't exactly what many would expect as the dynasty Bulls fell in five games to the talented, but trophy-less Nets.

WhatIfSports is a sports fan's dream as you can concoct historic matchups along with modern day contests for simulated outcomes. The series simulation went as follows.

GAME 1

GAME 2

GAME 3

GAME 4

GAME 5

Remarkably, even without home court advantage, the Nets knockoff the Bulls in five games. 

The battle of superstars goes Brooklyn's way. While Chicago has six titles in the trophy case and two separate three-peats, Brooklyn is aiming to fill its case for the first time in franchise history.












With sad state of NY Football, Nets will be back in spotlight soon enough

 The Jets and Giants opened their respective seasons on Sunday, with both clubs continuing their losing ways of the better part of the past decade.

Even the Bills, many NFL pundits pick to make the Super Bowl, lost 23-16 in lackluster fashion.

The Western New York club holds the only glimmer of hope to make this NFL season somewhat enjoyable for fans.

As far NBA fans in the New York market, the Nets are a little over two weeks away from opening training camp in San Diego, and by that time, Giants and Jets fans might be already yearning for basketball to get underway.

It's not often that a New York Metropolitan area team enters a season as the favorites to win the championship, but that's the exact expectations and pressure facing the Brooklyn Nets this upcoming season.

Outside of the Giants pair of titles in 2007 and 2011 and the Yankees World series championship in 2009, New York has been starved for a champion.

The Nets represent the city's best chance for a parade as the Jets and Giants appear to be closer to top of the draft type teams than top division squads.

Yes, wet know we're ignoring the Western New York football team, but Buffalo is a long way from New York city.

Nets training camp opens September 28 in San Diego while their opening game against Milwaukee will take place October 19.

The Brooklyn Nets are a cheat code with absurdly high NBA 2K22 ratings




 The Brooklyn Nets will hands down be the gamer's top choice of clubs to play with in this year's installment of the 2K franchise. 

Unsurprisingly, the Nets have three players ranked over 90 overall with Kevin Durant (96) James Harden (94), and Kyrie Irving (91) showcasing the Big three talents.

Brooklyn has the top overall team rating at 84, while fashioning a star-studded roster.

The Nets are the only team in this year's title to feature three 90-plus rated dynamos on the same team.






Brooklyn's team rebounding (57) and team defense (65) ranked among the bottom tier, but represent the two shortfalls of an otherwise nearly flawless ensemble of offensive standouts.

Even the gamenight experience is as authentic as ever with the game incorporating Olivier Sedra, the Nets public address announcers into the pregame cinematics and gameplay ambience.

Users have been critical of 2K's clunky gameplay with awkward player physics and while improvements to game fluidity have been made, there's still a way to go for the leading basketball videogame franchise.

The Nets' Big three will have a feathery touch from the outside thanks to a revamped shot meter with more realistic responsiveness. This will mean even more gamers splashing through shots from long range.

It will be scary hours this season at Barclays Center this season, and NBA2K fans looking to take down the Nets will likely be in for a whole lot of headaches this season.


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