The Brooklyn Nets just couldn’t hold back any longer.
After 10 straight losses, some being utter blowouts and others gut-wrenching fumbles at the goal line, the Nets returned home from their road trip heads hanging. Few fans want them winning games right now, and even fewer expect them to, but for the guys on the court, who’ve now “taken an L” every which way, you understand the frustration.
So, when a handful of dethroned Kings, who seemed eager for a beatdown with Russell Westbrook, Malik Monk, and DeMar DeRozan all sitting, stumbled into Barclays Center on a Sunday night, the Nets, like the spirited revolutionaries they are, hit ‘em with everything they have.
Brooklyn wasted little time letting viewers know they were going for the win. The thought that they might sneak by with another loss, which would’ve pulled them into first place for the top draft lottery slot after the Indiana Pacers won today, evaporated in a matter of minutes.
By night’s end, Brooklyn had dropped to third, still a game behind Indiana and a half game behind the Washington Wizards. Lottery odds however didn’t change since the top three teams have the same odds at the overall No. 1 — 14.0% — and a top four pick — 52.1%.
The Nets came out of the gates aggressively attacking the paint either to score or put the defense in the blender and queue up a three. They quickly went up double digits and maintained an advantage of that size until the fourth. Their active hands either ended or disrupted most Sacramento possessions in the first as well, where the Kings tallied just 18 points.
“They run a lot of similar things to us, so it was very simple in knowing what they’re about to do,” Noah Clowney said postgame. “A lot of the calls were similar, so just being connected focused on needing what we need to do.”
Less than three minutes into the second quarter, Brooklyn led 40-20. Brooklyn’s bench, once again largely composed of Long Islanders, didn’t lead on. They outscored Sacramento’s reserves 28-15 in the first half. Ochai Agbaji had the loudest pair of points by my estimation…
Brooklyn’s shooters were in the right spots and ready to fire each time down the floor, but in all honesty, Sacramento’s laughable defense did the most to set the table. Even Ben Saraf had an easy time blowing by defenders. The notion that Nic Claxton is a lightweight center, which has followed him his whole career, all of a sudden felt deplorable.
The Net offense that’s looked drier than burnt toast on multiple occasions without Michael Porter Jr. this year reached 50 points tonight before the midway point of the second. They led by a 68-45 margin at half, posting .500/.478 splits. It was their second largest halftime lead of the season, only behind their 33-point advantage vs Washington in early February.
Noah Clowney, who came off the injury report on Friday, was +20 at the break and had one of his best games as an off-ball or help defender. Nolan Traoré led at that point with 12 points and four assists. Clowney and Agbaji each had 11, with the former snatching two steals as well. Tyson Etienne was Long Island’s top representative, adding nine while shooting 3-5 from deep.
But the Nets, despite being all too familiar with being in a 20+ point hole, didn’t know how to keep Sacramento there.
The Kings chipped away in the third, winning the period 28-18. Brooklyn went small for much of it, but had its worst quarter handling the rock nonetheless. After giving it up just twice in the entire first half, the Nets committed 10 third quarter turnovers leading to 13 Sacramento points. Four came from Ben Saraf, who continues to mix the good with the bad. He finished tonight eight points, six assists, eight rebounds, and five turnovers while shooting 3-10 from the field.
The Kings got it down to nine early in the fourth, bridging a 60-43 run between periods. When they started the fourth 4-4 from the field, pressure began to mount, but the Nets, this time, were able to diffused it.
Brooklyn responded with their own 6-7 start to the period. The Kings, perhaps looking to finish the comeback a bit too early, started relying a bit too much on the 3-point line after that, and couldn’t hit the few that mattered.
Showing ‘em how it’s done, Drake Powell then splashed back-to-back threes. While he’s posted 42/29 splits this season, he’s shooting 35% from three in March. Progress…
“Just trusting my work, obviously, just trusting my teammates as well,” Powell said of his shooting. “They made some great passes, and then just trusting my coaches too.”
Those makes pushed the lead back to 20 with a little over five to play, and in a game between two tanking teams, that’ll just about do it.
Powell, who seemed to enjoy garbage time the most, getting a few reps handling the ball and working around screens, finished with 16 points while shooting 6-of-8 from the field and 4-of-6 from deep. Ochai Agbaji led all Nets with 18 points while shooting 6-of-11 from the field. He finished as a team-best +20. Ziaire Williams, who’s in the midst of a career-long streak of games with 15+ points, was the odd man out tonight, and did not log any minutes. You know, rest.
Final: Brooklyn Nets 116, Sacramento Kings 99
Ochai Agbaji tied his season high with 18 points tonight against Sacramento on 6-9 FG, 2-4 3PT and 4-4 FT in 20 minutes off the bench. He previously scored 18 on 3/9/26 vs. MEM.Drake Powell tied his career high of 16 points with a career-best four 3-pointers (4-of-6) tonight vs. SAC. He added two rebounds, two assists and one steal in 28 minutes.
The big impact in the Nets lottery chances related to worst case scenario. The team with the worst record can’t fall lower than No. 5, the team with the second worst record can’t fall lower than No. 6, etc.
Josh Minott missed tonight’s game with a left hip contusion. He took a tough fall in the Laker game on Friday night. Jalen Wilson also sat out with an illness. Jordi Fernández did not provide updates on either pregame tonight.
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Brooklyn hosts the startup Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday evening at the Barclays Center. The last time the Nets played Hornets, Charlotte was 6-15 and the Nets actually won. Much has changed since. Brooklyn’s lost 20 of their last 23 games. The Hornets are also 39-35 and expected to give someone a lot of trouble should they escape the play-in tournament. Our last look at them starts at 7:30.