Not a lot of time to get this up, so quickly to the lineups…
Devin Harris vs. Russell Westbrook
Watching these two guys go at it is going to be fun. Westbrook uses his athleticism and Devin his speed, but both guys are fantastic at getting into the paint, and both are a little more scoring oriented than your average point guard. We could find ourselves in a situation where both guys just start going at each other trying to one-up the other. That could get very entertaining.
Advantage: Push
Courtney Lee vs. Thabo Sefolosha
According to Al Iannazzone Courtney Lee has a sprained thumb on his shooting hand, but he won’t be missing any time. That is probably what contributed to his first bad game in quite a while (4-12 shooting). Tonight, he is going against a pretty good defender in Thabo, but he won’t produce much in terms of scoring.
Advantage: Push
Trenton Hassell vs. Kevin Durant
If it was any other team, I’d be pushing to see Terrence Williams starting here, but Hassell is a better defender and that is what you need when going against Kevin Durant. Durant is going to make shots, and he is going to get points in transition, so if you want to have a chance against the Thunder, you are going to have to keep him off of the foul line. If the Nets do that, they have a chance.
Advantage: Kevin Durant
Kris Humphries vs. Jeff Green
Boone is a game time decision with a sprained back, so you will probably see Kris Humphries starting (and if not, he will be getting a bulk of the minutes). Green is a guy who can score inside and out, but I think Humphries will be able to handle him, as he did a fantastic job of defending Dirk last time. Humphries needs to contribute on the offensive end though, he is creating too many wasted possessions with his missed mid-range jumpers as of late.
Advantage: Jeff Green
Brook Lopez vs. Nenad Krstic
Brook Lopez struggled defending Nenad last time out, as he floated on the outside and knocked down a few jumpers. I think the Nets should counter by going inside and trying to get Krstic in foul trouble early.
Advantage: Brook Lopez