As the Nets rotated players in and out of the lineup over the final five games of the season in order to be rested and healthy for the playoffs, only one player sat out all five games.
That player was Shaun Livingston, who sprained his right big toe on a dunk attempt in the Nets’ win over the Heat on April 8 in Miami and needed the week off to be back in the starting lineup for Saturday’s matinee Game 1 against the Raptors.
“I definitely needed the time,” Livingston said after Friday’s practice. “But circumstances, I think I would have been able to play through it. I would have just pushed through it.
“I feel better. I got a chance to get on the court for the first time [Thursday], so I feel better. I’m shaking off the rust, trying to get my wind back. There’s going to be a lot of adrenaline … [so I’ll] just try to stay composed and stay in the moment.”
Livingston has grown into a key figure for the Nets, entering the starting lineup and becoming the team’s top perimeter defender. That means he’ll spend the series squared off against Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan, who averaged 22.7 points per game and was selected to his first All-Star appearance.
“Making him take hard shots, understanding his tendencies and what he likes to do,” Livingston said of trying to slow down DeRozan. “He’s a scorer. He scores over 20 a game, and any guy that does that, he’s talented. So just making it hard for him, and hopefully that will throw off his rhythm, and the team’s rhythm.”
Livingston said he’ll have no minutes restrictions coming off the toe injury. The Nets head into the playoffs with no one besides Brook Lopez — out for the season after having surgeries on his right foot and left ankle — listed on their injury report.
Nets coach Jason Kidd will go into his first playoff series with a familiar face on the opposite end of the court.
Raptors coach Dwane Casey was an assistant on the 2011 Mavericks team that Kidd helped lead to the title, taking the head job with the Raptors that summer. Kidd had plenty of praise for Casey.
“He’s a competitor,” Kidd said. “He loves the competition. He’s a great teacher. He’s as good as they come, on and off the court. I could sit here all day and tell you how great he is. He was a part of that championship team in Dallas, so he’ll have his guys ready to go and well-prepared.”
Kidd admitted it would be easier not having to go up against a friend, but there’s little way of avoiding that when you spend as much time in the game as Kidd has over the course of his 19-year playing career.
“There’s always friendship involved in business or in this game of basketball, as a player or coach,” Kidd said. “There’s no better person to learn from or go against, so I’m excited about the challenge.”