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It doesn't matter who the Brooklyn Nets face in the first round. They're going to be a problematic out for anyone.

Brooklyn reinforced its position as the Eastern Conference's foremost party-crasher during Tuesday's come-from-behind victory over the Sacramento Kings. Led by a bonkers 27-point, four-assist fourth quarter from D'Angelo Russell—along with a clinic in defensive hustle and right-decision, right-time offense from Rondae Hollis-Jefferson—the Nets erased a 28-point deficit to earn the W.

One game isn't worth much in the grand scheme. But that victory is representative of everything for which the Nets stand. They are deeper than you think and smarter than advertised, and they will never stop fighting.

Regular-season depth can devolve into the postseason fallacy. Rotations shrink, and star power plays. The Nets' nine-to-11-man approach is more translatable because they no longer want for a conventional go-to option, which allows for a clear-cut pecking order.

Russell gives them that player. He isn't yet on the level of most playoff cornerstones, but he's a transcendent offensive lifeline. He's set to join Stephen Curry and James Harden as just the third player in league history to average more than 20 points, eight assists and three made triples per 36 minutes, and the improvement he's made as a leader, both from the bench and on the court, cannot be oversold.

Slow down Russell, and the Nets have other options. Spencer Dinwiddie is more comfortable entering attack mode than anyone on the roster, including his All-Star running mate. Only four players lean on isolation possessions for a larger share of their offensive touches, and three of them are Houston Rockets. And while Caris LeVert is a work in progress following his return from a dislocated right foot, he was Brooklyn's it guy before Russell went boom.

This cast does not measure up with the league's best. The Nets will square off with the Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers or Toronto Raptors in the first round, and any one of them will be a tough pull. Brooklyn's most important players are light on postseason experience, and head coach Kenny Atkinson is still searching for a starting lineup that offers a decided edge.

And yet, the Nets are built to surprise. Their defense is susceptible to getting beat by off-ball cuts, but they allow the right kind of shots. Over 35 percent of their opponents' looks come away from the rim but inside the three-point line—the second-best mark in the league, behind only the Utah Jazz, per Cleaning the Glass. Don't underestimate the impacts of Jarrett Allen, DeMarre Carroll and, yes, Treveon Graham.

Nothing the Nets nor Russell do on offense offsets the absence of a top-20 player. But what they lack in established superstardom, they approximate with long-range volume. They are fifth in three-point attempt rate and have downed more than 15 treys on 18 occasions, trailing only the Bucks and Rockets. That brand of firepower is capable of bridging just about every talent deficit Brooklyn will face in the East.