The contrast of styles, with two elegant West Coast protagonists trying to protect their home from an invasion by two ornery East Coast antagonists, is perfect for a nationally televised event on a Saturday evening.
The dramatic potential inherent within the matchup featuring Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson vs. James Harden and Kyrie Irving is spicy enough, and has enough star power, to offset the fact that Kevin Durant will not be in the picture.
The official game is Warriors-Nets, with a 5:35 tipoff at Chase Center in a potential NBA Finals preview. The marquee, however, says otherwise.
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Curry and Thompson are, by consensus, the best-shooting backcourt in NBA history. Harden and Irving might be the most dangerous pair of isolation practitioners in one backcourt in league history.
“Both of those guys are as tough to handle, on ball, as anyone I’ve ever seen,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Friday. “And Steph and Klay are as tough to handle off the ball as anybody that’s ever played.
“But with all four guys, there’s no weakness. James and Kyrie can both play off the ball and catch and shoot and play off each other. Steph and Klay can both put the ball on the floor and get to the rim and create for others or finish.”
Curry, Thompson, Harden and Irving represent arguably the top four veteran scorers at the guard position. Each has experienced multiple deep runs in the playoffs. Each has his own signature apparel line. Each owns a multi-year contract at the maximum value allowed by league rules.
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Harden might be slowed by hamstring tightness, but was not on the injury report Friday night and is expected to play. Irving, whose unvaccinated status bans him from home games in Brooklyn, has rejoined the team for its five-game road trip that begins Saturday.
Though all members of the home-team Warriors must be vaccinated, a loophole in the City of San Francisco restrictions allows unvaccinated members of visiting teams to play at Chase Center – as long as COVID-19 tests are negative, they wear a mask at all times other than when in the game and remain at least six feet from fans.
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The situation is rich with controversy, but it allows the Nets to put their best uninjured players on the floor. With Durant out, Harden and Irving clearly are the team leaders and crucial to Brooklyn’s best chances of winning.
“They put (the ball) on the ground quite a lot,” said Warriors reserve guard Gary Payton II, a noted ball thief. “Just watching them, trying not to let them get into their bag and do what they like to do.”
“I’ve been watching them for so long. The opportunity to have to guard both of them and try to take away some things they like to do, it’s exciting for me. It’s fun. I can’t wait.”
Payton is an outsider to the group, new to rivalries that were formed over multiple postseasons. The familiarity among Curry, Thompson, Harden and Irving will create a palpable energy even though each can expect to see several different defenders over the course of the game.
“We’ve seen those guys, both, often in the postseason,” Kerr said. “Both of those guys are as tough to handle, on ball, as anyone I’ve ever seen. And Steph and Klay are as tough to handle off the ball as anybody that’s ever played.”
The Warriors have beaten Irving, then with the Cavaliers, in the NBA Finals and lost to him and the Cavs the following season. Golden State faced Harden four times in the postseason, all when he was a member of the Rockets, and won every time.
The stakes won’t be as high on Saturday, but pride levels could be excessive. The four projected starting guards likely will dictate the outcome, and no fan of high-level basketball would want it any other way.