Brooklyn's changes are up front. Julius Randle arrived this offseason and slots next to Michael Porter Jr., with Egor Dёmin running the offense and Day'Ron Sharpe at center in the preseason opening lineup. Jordi Fernández has 2 forwards who can both score 25 on a given night. The question is whether a young backcourt can get them the ball where they like it.
The Nets' injury list on paper is just Joshua Jefferson, whose back still has him out of full team activities with no timetable. Early October brought more questions than that. No. 6 overall pick Mikel Brown Jr. missed the preseason opener with an ankle, and Nic Claxton was still working his way back. If either is held out Wednesday, Brooklyn's rotation gets thin in the same spots where Randle and Porter already soak up minutes.
Charlotte's injury report is a list of day-to-days, and for opening night that's the real story. Moussa Diabate, who started at center in the preseason opener, was ruled out of the finale with a right elbow injury. Grant Williams missed the whole preseason with a hamstring. If White, Knueppel and Allen all sit, Schröder carries the offense and Reid has to do more than any frontcourt piece should. If 2 of them play, this is a very different game.
So the opener comes down to who gets cleared before Wednesday. Brooklyn has its 2 headliners healthy and gets the home crowd. Charlotte has more proven guards on the roster and can't count on any of them yet. Whichever team plays its full rotation will look like the better team in October, whatever happens to either of them by April.