Down 3-0 to Celtics, Nets seem to be awaiting inevitable

History would tell you that even if they survived Monday’s Game 4 at Barclays Center the Nets had little chance at advancing out of the opening round of the playoffs with 143 teams previously trying — and all failing — after falling behind three games to none in NBA postseason history.

But you didn’t need the history books to tell you that. All you needed to do was listen to the Nets’ own voices.

The Nets already sounded as if they were conducting their exit interviews after the Game 3 loss Saturday with Kyrie Irving bemoaning the lack of cohesion — and drawing wide-eyed responses from anyone listening as he didn’t put that squarely on his own shoulders — Steve Nash talking about fatigue and Kevin Durant admitting to overthinking.  Veteran Blake Griffin put it plainly when he said after that loss Saturday, “I don’t know that we had the right spirit tonight.”

Shoulders slumped. Confusion. The Nets seemed to be just waiting for the final knockout punch or willing to let the fight be stopped if the Celtics even grazed them.

Asked Saturday night if he could use his experience coming back from a 3-1 deficit when he was with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2016 NBA Finals, Irving admitted, “Different situation brother, different situation. Being down 3-1 in the Finals that’s a totally different situation then compared to what we’re in to right now. And I don’t even want to compare it just out of respect for what that was, for the teammates that I had, the journey. We have our guys in our locker room, our brothers are there. This is something that’s new for us as a group. I can individually say I did this, I did that. But this is a team game.”

Add on the Ben Simmons saga and you had a team that already was facing a more daunting task — finding a path forward beyond this season. The Nets pushed their chips to the center of the table with the signing of Durant and Irving and then the trading of much of their young assets in exchange for James Harden — and subsequently shipping out Harden at the trade deadline for Simmons, who has yet to suit up for a single minute.

Putting together a team and a coach in Steve Nash that has seemed at every turn to be more attuned to appeasing the two stars at the top has the Nets now left to find a way forward. Does Irving ever become an everyday player for the team and more to the point, if he opts out of his player option for the remaining season on his contract, do the Nets want to commit to a five-year, $250 million deal to find out? Is Simmons, still just 25 years old, ever going to return to his All-NBA form after mental and physical struggles kept him out all season?

And Durant, who has endured injury struggles and played his heart out even as the Celtics have pounded him into submission, might want to consider, too, if he has hooked himself to the right stars in Brooklyn.

The Celtics have conducted a workmanlike dismantling of the Nets in the first three games, providing a defensive answer to every bit of the Nets star power. And with the Nets reeling, Boston coach Ime Udoka  was determined not to let his team ease off the gas now.

“There’s no complacency from our group, not content with where we’re at and understand how a series can flip due to several number of things,” Udoka said after Sunday’s practice. “You know, I’m a guy that will never, count something being done until it’s done. Ray Allen hit a shot to take away a championship ring my first year as a coach and so that’s always in my mind.

“And that’s what I harp on with our guys. Injuries happen. You know, one thing can happen to flip the series and you don’t want to be on the wrong end of that. So our message is, you know, enjoy what you’re doing, but do it better. And when it’s all done, we’ll enjoy it for a second and move on to the next one. And so that’s our mentality, one game at a time, one quarter at a time, one play at a time and don’t look at the big picture and try to get over with one play in the first quarter. We understand who we are defensively and how we can wear on people mentally, physically, and grind out a series and so that’s kind of our goal going into it. That’s how we look at Game Four.”

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