The Brooklyn Nets snuck into the All-Star break in an optimal lottery position and without a crowd of accusers behind them, alleging they\u2019ve compromised the game\u2019s integrity and warped its competitive nature. The latter without the former is a rare thing today, particularly this season.<\/p>\n
Tonight, they reemerged from it in a far less enviable spot. They visited the revamped Cleveland Cavaliers, and while the uneven matchup reinforced their advantageous draft position, it was no easy watch.<\/p>\n
The Cavs started the game with a 14-3 burst after the Nets opened shooting 1-7 from the floor. Cleveland\u2019s initial offensive fluidity warranted an early timeout for Jorid Fern\u00e1ndez, even by his standards. The second year coach called for one with the Cavs up just 4-0.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, it was two mistakes that were completely controllable, and it just tells me about the readiness of our players,\u201d Fern\u00e1ndez said of the timeout. \u201cIt was the lack of effort and readiness, and you know, I\u2019m not going to let it fly.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, premature didn\u2019t equal productive. On Brooklyn\u2019s next defensive possession, Evan Mobley got free for a wide open running dunk. That was the easiest of Cleveland\u2019s first six shots of the game, all of which they made. Less than 10 minutes deep, the Cavs were already up 15.<\/p>\n
One of the new Nets Ochai Agbaji again checked in toward the end of the first, followed by Drake Powell, Danny Wolf, Terance Mann, and Ziaire Williams. That group looked a tad less lost at the offensive end, but still wayward. The Nets shot just 2-13 on from deep in the first, and as a result, trailed 36-14 after it.<\/p>\n
Less than three minutes into the second, the Cavalier lead had already boiled to 20. Whether rising up to defend the rim or chasing Dennis Schr\u00f6der into the backcourt for loose balls, Day\u2019Ron Sharpe and Agbaji did their best to will Brooklyn back into it, and while I can\u2019t call being down 14 \u201cin it,\u201d the team did respond.<\/p>\n
As the second frame progressed, MPJ had an easier time getting to his spots and leveraging around the pressure of a defense well aware of his shooting prowess. Brooklyn also pushed for more points in transition, at one point enjoying a 14-6 run\u2026<\/p>\n
But as the offense found it\u2019s footing, the defense slipped. No Nic Claxton to defend the rim essentially made this a matchup nightmare for Brooklyn vs James Harden and Jarrett Allen as a pick-and-roll dance partners. The Cavs kept the music going for the entirety of the first half, going for 36 points the paint and outscoring the Nets there by 18 in the process. They posted .643\/.571 splits, while Brooklyn shot .365\/.269. That\u2019s a -27.8 and -30.2 difference in percentage points.<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir physicality and their intensity was as it should be for winning teams,\u201d Fern\u00e1ndez said. \u201cSo, we were not even close.\u201d<\/p>\n
So, Brooklyn started the second half down 70-48, once again in a battle against public embarrassment rather than the guys at the other end of the court.<\/p>\n
No one told the Cavs that. They started the third on a 15-2 run after making their first four shots. Brooklyn didn\u2019t hit a field goal until Danny Wolf splashed a corner three at the 6:43 mark of the third. Amid their cold streak, Donovan Mitchell canned a transition triple to put his team up 85-50. After that, when Spida pulled out his web-slinger celebration, it became even more clear who was having fun tonight and who wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
The Nets then bled out in the street like Uncle Ben, except this time there were no inspiring lessons to take away. Cleveland outscored Brooklyn 32-19 in this frame, inflating their lead to as many as 43 at one point.<\/p>\n
However, there were a few silver, check that, bronze linings down the stretch. And honestly, that\u2019s all we\u2019re in business for at this point.<\/p>\n
In the final minute of the third, Powell and Agbaji gave a look at at what can do together with their athleticism, chipping away six points to make it a 102-67 score entering the fourth\u2026<\/p>\n
Agbaji continued to play tough in the final quarter, adding another handful of transition points to help the Nets extend a 15-2 run between the periods. He finished the night with 13 points after shooting 5-of-8 from the field and 3-of-6 from deep, trailing only MPJ in the scoring department. Porter Jr. tallied 14 points on your 5-13 shooting while grabbing five boards.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, he did a great job,\u201d Fern\u00e1ndez said of Agbaji. \u201cHe was ready to shoot. He still has to get used to the spacing, the rules, some of the plays, and defensive concepts, but I think he did a great job. He was ready. He fought physically and mentally. He was ready to go, and it was good to see.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m excited about what we can do and the style we play is very unselfish,\u201d Agbaji said. \u201cThat\u2019s kind of the player that I am so I fit into that well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Said Agbaji post-game: \u201cI\u2019m excited about what we can do and the style we play is very unselfish. That\u2019s kind of the player that I am so I fit into that well.\u201d<\/p>\n
ICYMI, Agbaji came to Brooklyn in deadline day deal with the Raptors. Suffice it to say that the Nets won that deal. The Nets get the 25-year-old from the Raptors along with Raps 2032 second and $3.5 million in cash in return for the draft rights to Vanja Marinkovic, a 29-year-old Serbian shooting guard who had blown out his achilles day before. Agbaji will be a restricted free agent this summer.<\/p>\n
Brooklyn also rotated well to shut down Cleveland\u2019s reserves, who went 0-12 from deep in the fourth. Nolan Traore also extended his streak to six consecutive games with at least four assists, tying Kerry Kittles for the fourth-longest streak by a rookie in franchise history.<\/p>\n
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