Nets Could Experiment with Big Lineup

The Brooklyn Nets have a number of bigs that could see the floor this season.
Jan 15, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA;  Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo (13) and Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton (33) fight for a loose ball in the fourth quarter at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
Jan 15, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo (13) and Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton (33) fight for a loose ball in the fourth quarter at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
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The Brooklyn Nets have a lot of forwards and centers that will fight for minutes on the floor.

While they may not see the floor all the time together, Bleacher Report writer Dan Favale envisioned a "wild" lineup with Trendon Watford, Jalen Wilson, Cam Johnson, Noah Clowney and Nicolas Claxton, all of whom stand 6-8 or taller.

"Clowney and Claxton should be spending a ton of time together no matter what. The floor-spacing gets wonky if the former isn't being guarded from deep. But if he is, head coach Jordi Fernandez can try calling for double-big pick-and-rolls with Claxton as the initiator. He has a real floor game, folks," Favale writes. "This lineup also ensures we see plenty of Watford grabbing the ball and running like hell, and that Johnson gets plenty of self-creation opportunities—though he will be tasked with flying around away from the action, too. Dorian Finney-Smith is the more sensible pick to round out a pretty huge lineup. But Wilson gives off three-and-D vibes himself and, on balance, is more likely to stick with this team long-term."

In this potential lineup, Johnson would likely be the lead ball-handler. However, it's hard to envision more than three of these players being on the court at any given time.

That being said, the Nets are supposed to experiment this year, and the team might get to a point where it wouldn't hurt to roll out a lineup like this just to see what would happen.

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