Nets’ Wretched Run Doesn’t Bode Well For Playoff Push
As Brooklyn was slogging through the fourth quarter of yet another blowout loss in Orlando on Tuesday night, YES Network broadcaster Ryan Ruocco attempted to pull Nets fans off the ledge by mentioning the two upcoming home games versus Atlanta. Win those, Ruocco said, and the Nets would creep within two games of the 10th place Hawks in the battle for the final Eastern Conference play-in slot. With 22 games to go thereafter, Brooklyn would surely be in striking distance.
Excuse me for channeling my inner Jim Mora. “Play-in? You kidding me? Play-in? I just hope they can win another game!”
While Ruocco’s logic was technically correct, it assumes that this team has the wherewithal to completely resuscitate their moribund game that has been evident since mid-December. Consider these stretches: four losses in their last five games; 2-8 in their last 10 games; 7-21 in their last 28 games; and 10-27 in their last 37 games. The latter record, which almost equates to half an NBA season, amazingly is only the sixth-worst in the league during that span.
Amazing until you consider that those five other teams hold the rights to their 2024 first-round Draft pick. The Nets (22-36), of course, owe theirs to Houston as part of the 2021 James Harden blockbuster. These losses accrue zero benefits, doubling the season’s abject failure.
And too many of the recent results haven’t even been close. The average margin in their last six defeats is over 25 points. You want to argue that the 50-point debacle from Jacque Vaughn’s final game as Head Coach in Boston skewed the results? Well, the Nets fell behind by more than 30 points in three other “contests”, including Tuesday night’s 108-81 no-show in Orlando.
So much, too, for the proverbial bump from changing head coaches, as Kevin Ollie is now 1-3 since replacing Vauighn during the All-Star break. They’ve since played one good offensive half of basketball—the first 24 minutes of their sole victory at injury-ravaged Memphis on Monday night. Otherwise, they’re averaging 21.8 points per quarter. That’s unheard of in the modern NBA.
The Nets totaled 34 points over Tuesday’s middle two frames, allowing Orlando to pull away. I found it annoying that the YES broadcast kept referring to Brooklyn missing Cam Thomas and Ben Simmons while only making passing comments about the Magic playing without Paolo Banchero, an NBA All-Star. Sorry, but the Nets won that tradeoff.
The difference between the two clubs shouldn’t have been that striking when you matched up the available lineups. It was just that Orlando owned the superior coaching, intensity, and execution. Whereas the Magic found ways to free up their best player, Franz Wagner, for easy scoring opportunities against Brooklyn’s switching defense, Nets wing Mikal Bridges was harassed into a 2-for-14 shooting night. Orlando came up with 14 steals, and I’m not sure if those included the times they snatched the ball directly out of the hands of Nets defensive rebounders. Orlando simply wanted it more.
As for the coaching, Ollie has had some strange substitution patterns since taking over. Instead of riding the few hot hands at his disposal on Tuesday, he seemed to want to get those players off the court on a high note. Point guard Dennis Schroder scored eight points in the first 6:20, yet he was pulled on the dead ball after his second three-pointer in favor of the regressing Dennis Smith Jr. A two-point Magic lead expanded to double digits within four minutes. Jalen Wilson was doing some good things early in the second quarter, yet he was yanked after his 3 and a Trendon Watford and-one cut the deficit to six points. What, was he tired after 2:15 of action?
I had hope for Ollie during the first half of the Memphis game when he finally bent to the reality that Simmons can’t be effective playing alongside another non-shooter like Nic Claxton. Ollie pretty much split their minutes. He also benched Smith during the second half until garbage time. Because missing eight straight shots over two games will do that.
But then Smith appeared to walk off the court after the final horn looking dejected as if he missed a game-deciding shot. The Nets had just broken a four-game losing streak by 25 points for Ollie’s first career win as a Head Coach. I could understand if the overriding expressions in the moment were more of relief than euphoria. But for Ollie’s first interaction after such a memorable game was him wrapping his arms around Smith as if he needed consoling—and then going right back to him in Orlando--that said all you need to know about this team.
It is a dysfunctional mess, a veritable horror show. Yes, they can win some more games while the league plays out the string and might even take a game from a Hawks squad that will be without star guard Trae Young.
But they’d need an exorcism to qualify for the play-in round. At this point, though, I’d settle for a run of decent basketball.