NOTHING WAS THE SAME: The Return of Derek Baldwin (2023-2027)

[chosenone58]

Nets Seal the Deal on the Road for Back to Back Titles



Summary: Brooklyn came into Game 4 with one thing on their minds, taking home the trophy. They Nets balled out in the Toyota Center like they were playing in Barclays. They came out of the gate hot, scoring 47 points in the first quarter, tying with the Utah Jazz for the most points scored in the first quarter of a playoff game. Brooklyn shot over 47% from the field, including hitting 17 of their 34 three-point attempts. With Derek Baldwin in early foul trouble, Jeremy Lin got some solid minutes in what would be his last NBA game. Lin finished with 8 points in the victory. After putting up decent numbers in the first three games of the series, James Harden seemed to disappear in Game 4, finishing with only 12 points in the loss. Derek Baldwin showed up for his team, finishing with a double-double and pulling off a couple of impressive dunks to dazzle and disappoint the Houston fans. This year’s MVP, Shareef O’Neal was also named Finals MVP. He finished the series averaging 20 points and 15 rebounds per game.

As a great man once said, “job finished.” We just wanted to come in here and do what we’ve been doing all season long and that’s win. The only thing stopping us tonight was us. – Derek Baldwin, SG - Brooklyn Nets

Top Performers

Brooklyn Nets
Derek Baldwin - 24 PTS, 6 REB, 11 AST
Joe Hood - 21 PTS, 3 REB
Keith Perkins - 20 PTS, 4 REB, 6 AST


Houston Rockets
Khris Moore - 26 PTS, 2 AST
Otis Theus - 18 PTS, 6 REB
Terrence Ross - 18 PTS

[chosenone58]

NBA|CROSSOVER
Nets sweep their way to second title

By Aaron Barnes June 6, 2027

Everyone knew it would happen. A record breaking season with 77 wins. How could it not happen? The question was a matter of who would fall victim to the Nets on their quest for title number two?

Once the Rockets had gone down 3-0 in the Finals, talks began of the 2014 Bulls coming from being 3 games down to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder and thoughts on if Houston could pull off a similar upset.
Derek Baldwin, who was part of that 2014 championship team, only had one thing to say about that.

“They ain’t who we were.”

In what was his eighth NBA Finals appearance, he averaged 26 points per game in the NBA Finals, after averaging 22 points per game throughout the first three playoff series.

The Nets went a solid 12-1 throughout the playoffs only dropping one game to the Boston Celtics in the first round.

As they have done all year, the nets played solid team basketball for 13 games. The team’s leading scorers rotated almost nightly, which made for a difficult matchup for all of their opponents. The Nets starting five averaged double-digit points throughout their entire playoff run.

Paul George had a memorable Game 4 against Boston, scoring 31 points He had another solid performance in Game 4 against Philly. He averaged 12 points per game in the Eastern Conference Finals. He averaged 14.5 points per game throughout the playoffs.

“This is a team sport. I’m putting in the work like everybody else,” said George.

Shareef O’Neal, who was named Finals MVP for the second year in a row, averaged a double-double throughout the playoffs. He finished the Finals averaging 20 points and 15 rebounds per game. He improved upon his Finals performance from last season, where he averaged 20 points and 11 rebounds per game as Brooklyn captured their first title against Dallas.

“The kid definitely came to play tonight,” said Baldwin. “He was just an unstoppable force. He kept up that MVP level play all season long.”

Shaquille O’Neal stood courtside watching proudly as his son accepted the Bill Russell Finals MVP Award.

Derek Baldwin held his own beside his young counterparts. He kicked off Game 1 of the Finals with a 36 point performance as the Nets set the tone against the Rockets. He averaged 26.5 points and 8 assists per game throughout the NBA Finals. He looked to be on the quest for Finals MVP himself in this one.

“I was on a quest to get this trophy. I was on a quest for a ring. And we got it. We got it for Lin. We got it for Moose.”

Baldwin made mention of two of his Nets’ teammates that were retiring at the end of the season, Jeremy Lin and Greg Monroe. Lin was brought back as a member of the Nets this season, while Monroe has been there since Baldwin was installed as head coach, giving him his second title tonight.

“I think we can retire happy,” said Lin. “Everybody doesn’t get to go out like this. I can say that I’ve accomplished everything that I wanted to in my career. NBA title included.”

James Harden rides off into the sunset without an NBA Championship, but a career that he could still be proud of that includes two NBA Finals appearances after 18 years.

[chosenone58]

And that’s a wrap on Part 2 of the Derek Baldwin Universe! We’ve gone through 4 seasons, 2 as head coach and 2 as a player. It took 2 years to post this last season. But we made it! Thanks for all of those who followed along.


What’s next for Derek Baldwin, his family and the NBA? Follow the next installment here: The Mis-Education of Noah Baldwin (backdoor pilot can be found on page 45 of this chise)

[The JZA]

Once again leaving us with HOF content. I swear I gotta get on the ball and catch up, you make this look easy.

Congrats on the saga!!

[chosenone58]

Once again leaving us with HOF content. I swear I gotta get on the ball and catch up, you make this look easy.

Congrats on the saga!!

Appreciate it, fam.

I just let my mind run with these things.

[Agent]

The GOAT!

[chosenone58]

The GOAT!

Game recognize game