Nic Claxton has played in the postseason before, but the Nets center’s first playoff start will come with a difficult task: guarding 76ers star and MVP front-runner Joel Embiid.
He won’t have to do it alone. Claxton, head coach Jacque Vaughn and others all reiterated that stopping — or at least containing — someone with Embiid’s numbers (33.1 points and 10.2 rebounds per game) takes a team effort.
But Claxton, in his fourth NBA season, said that challenge is “what you live for as a competitor.”
“It does have to be a group effort, and it’s just going to be big on me not fouling, being on the court and just being locked in knowing what he’s trying to do out there,” Claxton said Wednesday.
Claxton’s desire to avoid fouls reflected what Vaughn told reporters earlier in the week, when he said the Nets want to avoid allowing Embiid the type of shot that’s guaranteed to not have a defender.
Embiid finished the regular season second in the NBA with 771 free-throw attempts, too.
But Claxton also knows that he can be more physical in the playoffs — he recalled when Tristan Thompson, then a member of the Celtics in 2020-21, guarded him in the postseason and was “all over my back the whole game.”
Embiid has a size advantage, and Claxton acknowledged he won’t be able to outmuscle him, but rather wants to use footwork, quickness and offensive instincts to create an advantage.
“You just can’t get frustrated,” Claxton said. “When you play against a guy that averages 33 points they’re going to score, you can’t get frustrated. You got to stay the course and just remember the game plan throughout the course of the game.”
Vaughn could also experiment a bit. When posed with the unusual scenario of Claxton and reserve center Day’Ron Sharpe playing together at times to counter Embiid’s length, the coach said “nothing’s off the table for this group, man.”
“We’re going to figure a way and find out what works,” Vaughn said. “If we play three centers, if that works, then we’ll do that.”
Dorian Finney-Smith said his right wrist, which bothered him toward the end of the regular season, is “coming along” but won’t affect his availability for the series opener Saturday.
He has tried to monitor how many shots he takes in the gym throughout the day, testing a “fine balance” between rest and reps.
But, he said, it’s “playoff time,” and at this point most players will be dealing with some sort of injury.
“For me, I just listen to the guys back there that tell me to calm down,” Finney-Smith said. “Don’t go shoot on your days off and do too much, because like I said, I love to work so I just want to get my reps.”
The consensus among Nets players available to reporters Thursday: Embiid should win MVP over Nikola Jokic and others.
“I mean, I would just say because I know narratives and stuff drive that award,” Spencer Dinwiddie said. “Do you give it to Jokic for the third time? Do you pick Giannis [Antetokounmpo], who’s likely the best player in the league?
“There’s ways you can go with it but overall, I would say they’re probably gonna give it to Embiid, two-time scoring champ, just to switch up. … He’s been phenomenal, and he deserves it.”