LaMarcus Aldridge Signing Means Nothing, Says NBA Champ
Over the week, former San Antonio Spurs forward LaMarcus Aldridge decided to sign with the Brooklyn Nets after clearing waivers. The seven-time All-Star averaged 13.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game in 21 games.
The 35-year-old is not the only former all-star that elected to sign with the Nets this month. Former slam dunk champion and six-time all-star Blake Griffin signed with Brooklyn. After agreeing to part ways with the Detroit Pistons and both decisions have caused many NBA fans to voice their frustrations on social media.
The Nets already had Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden even before Aldridge and Griffin signed. Now some NBA fans just feel that it’s just becoming ridiculous. However, former Net and NBA champion Richard Jefferson believes the addition of Aldridge do esn’t change anything in the Eastern Conference.
Matt Barnes and Richard Jefferson were featured on Monday’s episode of ESPN’s The Jump and shared their opinions on the Nets new additions.
“It means absolutely nothing because they were already better than everyone else, in my opinion. So, all it did was widen the gap even further,” said Jefferson.
“People who are upset, you have a right to be upset because might think Philly closed the gap or Milwaukee is a little bit closer because they got PJ Tucker. But ultimately, it just widens the gap from everybody else in the east.”
Matt Barnes added: “It looks good on paper. Great on paper. All the accolades this team has as individuals are incredible. My two concerns, obviously chemistry is important; they’re putting all these pieces late together late in the season. Obviously, your big three will career this team, but the deficiency they lacked from the beginning was defense. And that is still something that they didn’t address. A lot of pressure will be on DeAndre Jordan and whether or not he will hold this defense down moving forward towards the playoffs.”
The Nets are one game behind the Philadephia 76ers with a 31-15 record despite not having their big 3 in many games this season.
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