After big offseason, bold predictions for the new-look Brooklyn Nets

1. The Nets are going to make some noise in next year’s playoffs

The Brooklyn Nets and postseason play have not always gone hand-in-hand over the past several seasons. In fact, prior to the 2018-19 campaign, the Nets had not been to the postseason since 2014-15.

Furthermore, they reached the playoffs just three times during a 10-year stretch that spanned from 2008-09 through 2017-18. Again, not exactly what you would call a perennial playoff contender.

Fast forward to the present, and the future looks a lot brighter. Sure, the Nets had an All-Star point guard last season in D’Angelo Russell, but Kyrie Irving put up better numbers in several categories, including scoring (23.8 vs. 21.1), rebounding (5.0 vs. 3.9), overall shooting percentage (48.7 vs. 43.4) and 3-point shooting (40.1 percent vs. 36.9).

Even without Kevin Durant in the rotation this season (torn Achilles), adding Irving to the mix will result in at least eight to 10 more wins, which will push the Nets past the 50-win mark.

Along with that, while the Milwaukee Bucks and Sixers are considered locks for the top two spots in the conference, the remainder of the upper half of the conference playoff picture is anyone’s guess. The defending champion Toronto Raptors will slip from the No. 2 spot following the departures of Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green.

The Celtics will more than likely take a step back as well after losing Irving and Al Horford. Meanwhile, the Indiana Pacers will be without the services of Victor Oladipo as he has been rehabbing a torn quad injury that forced him to miss the latter half of the season and no timetable has been provided as to when he may return.

Taking those factors into consideration, not only will the Nets win 50 games next season, they’re also going to challenge for one of the top four seeds in the conference and they’re going to win their first playoff series for the first time since the 2013-14 campaign.