![]() Vaughn replaced Steve Nash early in the season and the Nets announced Tuesday they were extending his deal. I just want him to take one day at a time - get his mental, his heart right, his spirit right, and we’ll be fine.”ĪP Basketball Writer Brian Mahoney contributed to this report.NEW YORK (AP) - Jacque Vaughn, who has coached the Brooklyn Nets into playoff position despite the trades of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving during another turbulent season for the franchise, has agreed to a multiyear contract extension. “If he feels like he can go out there and contribute, then great,” Irving said. Irving said no one is putting expectations on Simmons to rush back. ![]() ![]() He’s also doing some on-the-court work but has been dealing with back issues since he was dealt from Philadelphia. Point guard Ben Simmons’ status is more ambiguous. He’s been doing some light shooting and drills but isn’t close to playing at full speed. The Celtics aren’t anticipating Williams being ready to return before the second round, should they advance. We’ve played in quite a few games without him now and have done good enough beating some good teams.” They think it’s attack time because Rob’s out. We know how (Durant) he scores and how he attacks in a lot of drop situations. “We still have Marcus (Smart), Jaylen, Jayson and everybody else in between. “We have layers to our defense, it’s not like we get blown by and Rob is protecting,” he said. Udoka said he thinks they can fill in the gaps just fine. It’s exciting because we know each other really well.”īrooklyn’s Bruce Brown made headlines when he told reporters he thinks the Nets can attack Al Horford and Daniel Theis at the rim, noting that the Celtics have “less of a paint presence” without Williams. Now we get to see who’s the better squad. We go against Boston and have a chance to redeem ourselves,” Irving said. “I think this is the best part of the story that could be written. Irving has a lot of respect for what the the Celtics have built since he departed Boston after an at-times tumultuous two seasons. Led by Durant, Irving and Harden, the Nets took the series 4-1, overpowering a Celtics team that didn’t have Jaylen Brown after a late-season hand injury. The seeds were reversed when these teams matched up in the first round of the playoffs last season. “In order to win you have to win against really good teams at some point.” “We weren’t running from anybody, we were worrying about ourselves the whole time,” Udoka said. They are just 11-10 without Williams, but trying to avoid Brooklyn was never a consideration. The Celtics’ defensive (111.1) and offensive ratings (124.0) were the best in the NBA after the All-Star break. “The focus toward the end of the season was worrying about health and ourselves more than the opponent. “We know who we are and who we’ve been over the past few months,” he said. Still, Udoka dismissed the idea that the Celtics should be considered an underdog in the series. In those games Irving is averaging 27.8 points and 5.8 assists, with Durant averaging 29.5 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.5 assists. ![]() In the 17 games they’ve played together this season, Brooklyn is 11-6. While Tatum has taken his scoring to elite levels, notching 40 or more points five times during the regular season, including a season-high 54-point performance in their most recent matchup with Brooklyn last month, Durant and Irving have sparkled, too. “They had some ups and down this year but for the most part got their full team and they’re really good. ![]() “Everybody knows the talent that they have and that it’s not a traditional seventh-seed team,” Tatum said. It’s a challenge the Celtics are ready for. Brooklyn visits Denver after overtime win against Minnesota ![]()
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