After a controversial loss, Lebron James reflects on his career and the future of basketball.
The nba finals 2021 game 4 is a quote from LeBron James, who has had an incredible career with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The series was one of the most exciting in the NBA Playoffs of 2021. The Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets threw haymakers at one other until Game 7 of the Eastern Conference playoffs, when the Bucks ultimately put Brooklyn away. Kevin Durant came close to leading the injured Nets to the conference finals, but a toe on the line converted a potential series-clinching 3-pointer into a game-tying 2. Former Brooklyn center Allen, Jarrett, on the other hand, acknowledged that he’s been doing some “what if” pondering this summer.
Milwaukee went on to win the championship thanks to Giannis Antetokounmpo’s ruthless brilliance. The Nets’ small big men couldn’t handle the two-time MVP (Blake Griffin, Jeff Green, Nicolas Claxton, and Durant all had their turns playing speed bump to the Greek Freak). Antetokounmpo averaged 31.9 points and 12.9 rebounds per game in the series, shooting 57.4 percent overall. Is it possible that Allen might have made a difference?
As part of the James Harden deal, the Brooklyn Nets handed up Jarrett Allen.
Jarrett Allen (R) believes he might have made a difference for the Brooklyn Nets in their playoff matchup with Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks. | Getty Images/Steven Ryan
Jarrett Allen was a late first-round selection of the Brooklyn Nets in 2017 and was one of general manager Sean Marks’ first trade victories. The Washington Wizards sought shooting at the 2017 trade deadline. The Nets had cap space available. Marks agreed to take the dreadful contracts of Andrew Nicholson and Marcus Thornton off Washington’s shoulders in exchange for a first-round selection. In exchange, Brooklyn transferred Bojan Bogdanovic to Washington, D.C.
Brooklyn selected Allen from Texas with the 22nd selection obtained from the Wizards. Allen, who was inexperienced but skilled, started at the end of his rookie season and beat out free agency DeAndre Jordan for the starting position in 2019.
Allen, on the other hand, was a part of the four-team trade that sent James Harden to Brooklyn in January 2021. Allen and Taurean Price went to Cleveland, Rodions Kurucs and seven first-round choices went to Houston, and Caris LeVert went to the Indiana Pacers.
Allen excelled in Cleveland, averaging 13.2 points and 9.9 rebounds in 30.3 minutes per game, and was rewarded with a five-year, $100 million contract as a restricted free agency to stay with the Cavs. But, against the Bucks, how much of a difference could Allen have made?
Antetokounmpo had gotten everything he wanted versus Brooklyn before to Allen’s move.
Jarrett Allen’s Brooklyn Nets went 1–6 in games versus Antetokounmpo while he was with the team. That doesn’t rule out the possibility that Allen was the main defender in the matches. It simply means Antetokounmpo ruled Brooklyn. How powerful are you? He shot 55.6 percent overall and 42.9 percent from 3-point range, averaging 27.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, 6.1 assists, 1.6 blocks, and 1.4 steals a game.
Allen, who was never more than a rebounder and pick-and-roll player for Brooklyn, started six of the seven games, averaging 8.7 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks per game. He made 57.4 percent of his field goal tries.
Between January 2018 and January 2020, the games were held. Last season, Milwaukee played Brooklyn for the first time five days after Harden’s trade. The Bucks defeated the Nets in two of their three encounters last season, with the home team winning each game. Milwaukee won Game 7 in Brooklyn in their postseason encounter, which was their lone road victory.
On SiriusXM NBA Radio, Allen said that he believes he could have made a difference for the Nets.
“I feel like I could have aided them in some way. I don’t think I would have been the No. 1 component, but I believe I could have aided them in reaching the Finals. It occurred to me a few times; I’m not going to lie to you.”
Jarrett Allen
At the end of the day, it’s one of those unanswerable questions.
With the Brooklyn Nets, Jarrett Allen became a fan favorite.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDl qzfdeE8
Jarrett Allen played a key part in the Brooklyn Nets’ transformation from lottery squad to playoff team. He was an unflappable shot blocker. Allen garnered global attention early in the 2018–19 season with a pair of dunks versus Griffin, who was then with the Detroit Pistons. In a victory against the Los Angeles Lakers in December 2018, The Fro rejected a slam attempt by LeBron James during Brooklyn’s seven-game winning run.
While Allen did not have a game-changing performance against Milwaukee, neither did Harden. Due to a hamstring ailment, The Beard missed three games in the series and was otherwise ineffective. Harden scored only 10.8 points per game in 34.8 minutes per game during the last four games, shooting 30.6 percent overall and a dismal 19.2 percent from three-point range.
Jarrett Allen, if nothing else, may have saved Durant some of the ugly defensive labor while still shouldering the whole offense.
Basketball Reference and Stathead provided the statistics.
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The nba finals schedule is a topic that has been on everyone’s mind. The NBA Finals are going to be exciting this year, and I could have had a hand in helping get to the finals.
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