The Brooklyn Nets (6-17) have won three of their last four games after a disappointing four-game losing streak against some of the better teams in the Eastern Conference. Brooklyn has been dealing with some injuries lately and while the goal of this season is to develop the younger players, the Nets are also making their way up the power rankings.
“The Nets have won as many games in December (3-1) as they had won through Nov. 30 (3-16), taking advantage of a soft stretch of schedule, but also just playing a lot better,” NBA.com’s John Schuhmann wrote to lead off his entry ranking Brooklyn as the 25th-best team in the league. To Schuhmann’s point, all three of the Nets’ victories over the past four games have come against some of the worst teams in the NBA, including the New Orleans Pelicans (3-21).
“The bigger difference between the December Nets (108.0 points allowed per 100 possessions) and the Nets of the first 19 games (122.4 allowed per 100) has been on the other end of the floor,” Schuhmann continued. “It certainly helps that their four December opponents all rank in the bottom half of the league offensively, but they held Chicago, Charlotte and New Orleans to an average of 9.5 fewer points per 100 possessions than they’ve scored otherwise. The Nets rank second in opponent field goal percentage in the paint (51.7%) this month.”
While most teams are going to have better performances against lesser teams in the league, the Nets rely on easier matchups to get their wins, even though the Chicago Bulls (9-14) appeared to be one of the better teams in the Association earlier in the season. As a testament to how the general public believes that Brooklyn is one of the worst teams in the league, the Nets were favored in their 119-101 win over the Pelicans for the first time this season.
To be clear, the Nets have also played better over time as it seems that forward Michael Porter Jr. has found his groove within Brooklyn’s system and it’s paying off in the wins column. Ultimately, when this season is over, the Nets will likely be looking at a top-5 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft Lottery, but in the midst of another rebuilding season, it’s encouraging to see that Brooklyn is getting recognition for its improved play.