CHICAGO -- It was what you may call a Broadway hit.
In his Nets debut at the Barclays Center last Sunday, a visibly out of shape James Harden huffed and puffed for 40 minutes and carved a triple-double that lifted Brooklyn past the Orlando Magic, 122-115.
The Beard recorded 32 points, 12 rebounds and 14 assists while shooting 8-of-18 from the field and making 13 of 15 free throws.
The shimmer of his triple-double effort eclipsed the fact that Harden barely eluded an inglorious quadruple-double by vomiting nine turnovers. He also misfired seven of his 10 triples.
In other words, Harden brought his bad habits in Houston to New York.
He was careless with the ball and carefree with his 3-point shot selection.
But that didn't stop the former disgruntled Rocket from declaring that once Kyrie Irving returns to the Nets lineup "it's going to be scary hours."
While others may deem that as a feral Tarzan roar, I view it only as a hollow threat. At least for now.
Look, the Nets surrendered 115 points to the Magic, who are ranked 26h in the league in points scored per game. They also allowed Orlando, 28th in field goal shooting percentage at 43.6, to make 44 of 95 shots (46.3 percent).
I don't think any of the elite teams are afraid of a Nets defense that gives up 113.1 points per (22nd in the NBA) while toting a ninth-ranked defensive rating of 109.5.
To acquire Harden, the Nets shipped Jarrett Allen to Cleveland, a move that further weakens their defense.
Allen is a frisky 22-year-old kid who averaged 11.2 points, 10.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks for Brooklyn this season.
With Allen gone, the Nets' frontline will now rely heavily on veterans Jeff Green and DeAndre Jordan, who have a combined age of 66 while logging 51,645 playing minutes of wear and tear.
Good luck stopping the Milwaukee Bucks or the Boston Celtics with that.
THE IDEA THAT THE NETS CAN OVERCOME THEIR POROUS DEFENSE BY SIMPLY OUTSCORING THE OPPOSITION IS STUPID AT BEST.
That ploy doesn't work in the playoffs where the games grind to a halt and you get into a torturous seven-game set with teams like Miami who make you bleed for every basket.
Kevin Durant is averaging 18.8 field goals a game. Harden just shot 18 in his debut. Where does coach Steve Nash fit in the 20.1 field goals that Kyrie Irving attempts per outing?
Right now, the Nets hoist 80 shots per game and if 56.9 of those go to their Big Three how does that balance their offensive attack?
And once Harden gets comfortable and starts to dribble his beard off, at what points would Irving suddenly get untethered and unhappy?
Durant looks amazing with a 30.7 points per game average while sinking 48.3 percent of his 3s. But with his high usage, 34.9 minutes an outing, can he keep it together healthwise following a lengthy layoff due to two lower leg injuries?
Fifth in the East standings at 8-6, the Nets have a lot of questions.
Harden is very good. But he's no Allen Iverson.
He is not The Answer.
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