The Brooklyn Nets have raced out to an early 12-5 start, the best record in the Eastern Conference. This despite Kyrie Irving still having zero involvement with the team thus far after his offseason vaccination drama.

Nets head coach Steve Nash was vocal on the team learning to play without their All-Star guard. Nash admits that they were fully engaged with a plan that involved Kyrie Irving even during training camp but had to adjust on the fly.

Via ClutchPonts' Dave Early:

“We started our training camp first kind of week or two with Kyrie and kind of a clear continuity path from last year and then we had to change of lot of things,” admitted Nash after the Nets' latest win over the Magic. “So now we do have to explore how we can come together, find commonality, find ways to to be efficient and effective offensively.”

While the Nets have been able to pile on the victories so far without Irving, they've had trouble in games against some of the league's elite teams. Their five losses were all double-digit blowouts against the Warriors, Bulls, Bucks, Heat, and Hornets.

Brooklyn has been able to dispatch lower tier teams, but once the games truly start to matter in the postseason, that may be when their need for Kyrie Irving's return is at its highest.