Nicolas Claxton is ready to star in a ‘new beginning’ in what will be his fourth season in the NBA and with a new contract for two seasons and almost 17 million dollars under his arm. For the first time in his career, it is expected that the player will have the opportunity to establish himself as a full-time starting center, within a system that assumes a much more fluid offense now that all the pieces are healthy.
The Nets enter the 2022-23 season with their stellar trident (Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons) healthy and available, in addition to having recovered Joe Harris from the ankle problems that derailed his 2021-22 season. Now Steve Nash will have a steady rotation and plenty of attacking options at his disposal, which should be a boon for Claxton.
“That will make my job a lot easier. Just by having all those shooters, teams won’t be able to obstruct the lane to the basket as much,” Claxton said. The New York Post. “Last year we had several quintets that didn’t allow us to space out the floor, but this year we’ll have those guys to open up the lane.”
Claxton’s main challenge will be, like some of his teammates, staying out of harm’s way. Since his arrival in the NBA in 2019 he has not reached 50 games in any of his seasons. Last year he recorded his top, with 47 games, although physical problems prevented him from reaching a certain regularity. Thus, the center he emphasized improving his physique during the summer.
“He’s taken a step forward in professionalism,” Nets head coach Steve Nash said. “His attention to detail, his consistency, have improved and we have already seen the first results. We feel that he will be able to play longer stretches at a higher intensity. He is stronger, more physical. We will continue to increase his understanding of the game and spatial awareness of it on the pitch.”
The coach also stated that they have been able to add more plays to the offense, which they have begun to put into practice during the preseason. There is still a lot to work on, but Claxton has shared his satisfaction with what he has seen so far. “I love the way we are playing attacking right now. like steve said [Nash], the ball cannot stop. We are trying to give it more movement. That will make us much more difficult to defend. We have the talent, we have the shooters and I personally am just trying to become as much of an offensive threat as possible.”
(Cover photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
