Nets’ Kyrie Irving says he moved to a hunting guard to allow James Harden to succeed at the level

When the Nets got James Harden in a blocking trade with the Rockets last month, the prevailing wisdom was that he had to make a sacrifice to stay with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

Now it seems Irving is sacrificing his natural position as a point guard to allow Harden to succeed at the point.

“I feel he’s been doing a great job leading a point guard career,” Irving said after the Nets defeated Steph Curry and the Warriors, 134-117, Saturday night at Chase Center.

“We set that up maybe four days ago now. I looked at it and said, ‘You’re the point guard, and I’m the firing guard,’ and that was as simple as that. So he’s been taking control of the duties and doing an amazing job. And it just makes my job easier, just going out and doing plays and playing for free, so it’s fun. ”

Harden entered the game leading the NBA in assists at 11.0 per game and then sent out 16 assists with 19 points and eight rebounds against the Warriors.

Irving, meanwhile, was successful as he scored 23 points on a 10-of-17 shooting along with five boards and four assists as the Nets improved to 16-12 in the first game. den swing West Coast aca. Irving scored on several drives, a sled and three marks. The game had 35 assists and 13 innings in the Nets.

When asked if he had to change his mind to change careers, Irving said, “I’ve been playing on so many basketball levels at this level, this just makes him competitive side so it’s fun, it’s fun it’s a challenge. Not every night looks good, but when it looks good, we celebrate our performance and just want to get consistency afterwards. ”

Harden initially said it would be easier for him in Brooklyn, and recently said he was “draining” being the man by getting 40+ points every night in Houston.

“I came into this team knowing they have two distinct scores on this team,” Harden said. “Of course I score when I have to but as long as I get everyone involved and Ky gets the pictures he wants, KD gets the pictures he wants, it’s very effective, it seems to work well that way.

“It simply came to our notice then. We can score at bases, it’s waterproof, and we seem to be getting such a late rhythm, so we have to keep up. ”

First-year head coach Steve Nash said last month that Harden’s natural position is a point guard, even though Irving lost seven games for “personal reasons” and then Covid’s protocols.

“Throwing Kyrie in the mix makes us better,” Nash said before Irving returned. “It’s a great problem, trying to figure out how they can live at the highest level.

“So I think it will take time, it will be a change for everyone but it is an amazing problem to have and something that I think we will enjoy. ”

After Irving returned to the team, he and Harden changed at the point, with Irving also playing off the ball.

Now Harden says he is making life easier for everyone by knowing that his and Irving ‘s roles are more clearly defined. This was just the seventh game where the “Big 3” of Harden, Durant and Irving played together.

“[We talked] in practice and we were just going over sets and when the coach says, ‘James you’re going to take the ball upstairs and get guys in our sets’ and we’re all fine with it, ”said Harden. “For me as a point guard, I try to get scenes from boys and know where the boys like the ball. Kyrie is an incredible scorer, he can score anywhere on the floor, so just make sure he’s engaged …. And in that third quarter he was incredibly aggressive. ”

Irving said he sacrifices for the good of the team, which has a desire to win an NBA title.

“We don’t want to take our majesty as a contribution to where it is now and then we want to hold each other to account to reach another level in long-term terms,” Irving said.

“[We’re] just trying to build a few companions out there and just having fun getting the upper hand. Obviously, we played against a good team [Saturday] with Steph leading the group but embarking on a West Coast tour was a major challenge. But we look forward to holding shows where we understand coming into the game that we must sacrifice, all of us, in order to have the highest potential as a team.

“It’s not a stand-alone game. We don’t want to be the mainstay so we got sacrificed and it’s fun. ”