The Brooklyn Nets came into Friday’s preseason finale at the Toronto Raptors with the understanding that it would be the last tune-up game for them before the beginning of the 2025-26 regular season. Brooklyn had a good start to the preseason with wins over Hapoel Jerusalem and the Phoenix Suns, but the Raptors got the best of the Nets in the end.
The Nets lost their preseason finale at the Raptors 119-114 despite coming back from as many as 18 points down to make the game interesting in the fourth quarter thanks to several players stepping up. Forward Michael Porter Jr. led the way with 34 points and 10 rebounds while forward Ziaire Williams came off the bench with 20 points and two rebounds of his own to assist in the comeback.
While Brooklyn made plenty of plays to get back into the game, part of the reason that they weren’t able to win was because the huge hole that they dug themselves with the amount of turnovers they committed in the face of Toronto’s on-ball pressure. Here are three takeaways from Friday’s preseason finale loss at the Raptors:
Michael Porter Jr. Might Be The Primary Scoring Option
If this game was any indication, Porter looks like he’s already ready for the regular season to start with the way that he was shooting the ball and attacking almost every time he got the ball in his hands. While Porter and Cam Thomas will likely flip-flop between who is the main scorer on any given night, Porter’s ability to shoot the ball and spread the floor could be important for Thomas to have the operating room he needs to work his magic.
Rookie Point Guards Show Signs Of Readiness
One of the main takeaways from Friday’s game was how much the rookie point guard rotation of Egor Demin, Nolan Traore, and Ben Saraf struggled against Toronto’s physicality and on-ball pressure throughout the first half. By the end of the game, the Raptors forced the Nets to turn the ball over 23 times, leading to 34 points for Toronto and the win in the end given that Brooklyn trailed by as much as 18 points in the game prior to their comeback.
Each rookie had his own issues with the Raptors’ pressing defense, but Demin looked to be the most prepared of the three and that has to be encouraging, especially with him coming off his plantar fascia injury. In the second half, it seemed like Traore and Saraf followed Demin’s lead and started to get settled into the game enough to make the players that head coach Jordi Fernandez is expecting from them in the regular season.
Ziaire Williams Is Only Getting Better
While Williams will most likely come off the bench when the Nets open their regular season with a road matchup at the Charlotte Hornets on Oct. 22, he is certainly giving Terance Mann a run for his money with his play in the preseason. Williams went off for 20 points and two rebounds and while he got himself into some foul trouble on the defensive end, he made some big shots that allowed Brooklyn to make its comeback and make the game interesting.