The Nets are still looking for that first win, and the pain of Tuesday’s overtime loss in Boston is sitting front and center.
Brooklyn dropped to 0-4 after Jayson Tatum’s game-winner, and the number is clearly on the minds of the players. Center Day’Ron Sharpe said the group feels the weight of it, especially with last year’s rough opening still fresh.
“ For sure,” center Day’Ron Sharpe said. “ You don’t want to have a zero on the board.
Last year, we started 0-7 and we’re not trying to do the same thing this year. ”
Head coach Jordi Fernandez isn’t interested in panic mode. He liked the way the Nets competed against Boston and wants the focus to stay on repeating that effort instead of chasing the result.
“ We want to play with an edge, not anxiety,” Fernandez said. “ I just want to see continuity from what we did in the game against Boston.
There’s no doubt in my mind, the first [win] is gonna come … I believe in the process. Right now, I’m not anxious about a win.
I want to play consistently the right way. That [Boston] game is a clear example of who we want to be.”
Michael Porter Jr., the team’s leading scorer, came out of that game encouraged, too, pointing to the time it takes for a roster with several offseason changes to settle in together.
One of the brightest spots so far has been Mikel Brown Jr. The No. 6 overall pick poured in 17 points on Tuesday, with 13 coming in the fourth quarter, and drilled the shot that forced overtime.
Still, the final seconds of overtime left him with a couple of mistakes he knows he has to clean up. He owned it afterward and said he plans to go through the film with the coaches and with Fernandez.
“ [Jordi Fernandez] obviously acknowledged, ‘This wasn’t just on you. It’s a team effort.’
But I set standards for myself when it comes to that stuff,” the 20-year-old Brown said. “ As a guard, time management, blowing coverages on the defensive end, that I just can’t have.
I’m gonna go watch that film with the coaches, go watch film with Jordi, break it down, learn from it and be better.”
Another young Net drawing notice is Nolan Traore. The French guard struggled early, but over the last two games he’s flashed progress on both ends. In that span, he’s averaging 16.0 points, 4.0 assists and 1.5 steals in 24.5 minutes per game while shooting 60% from the field.
Sharpe said Traore’s downhill pressure matters because it opens up the rest of the offense.
“ Him putting pressure on the rim, it allows us to open our game for three-pointers and things of that nature,” Sharpe said after Thursday’s practice.
Traore earned the start over Keon Ellis on Tuesday and stayed in the starting five for Friday’s game against Detroit. With Egor Demin out because of a bone bruise in his leg, Fernandez chose to go big, pairing Traore with Chaney Johnson, Michael Porter Jr., Julius Randle and Sharpe rather than adding another guard.
Fernandez also made clear that communication is a bigger issue once the younger players are on the floor together, even if things are fine away from the court. That’s where he wants Moritz Wagner to help.
The free agent addition is the team’s backup center, and Fernandez wants him setting the tone defensively.
“ Everything is new for him, but he’s out there being the ultimate pro, a veteran, always communicating,” Fernandez said.
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A shorthanded Nets group found enough offense to beat the Pacers 98-90, and Nolan Traore was a big reason why. After a slow start, the guard helped turn the game in Brooklyns favor with a steadier second half, finishing with 14 points and six assists while Michael Porter Jr. and Julius Randle added important scoring support.
Day'Ron Sharpe also gave the Nets a lift inside with 15 points and 13 rebounds, a reminder that the roster can still produce when pieces are missing. Even so, the win came with a familiar caveat for Brooklyn, which was already playing without Egor Demin and Mikel Brown Jr., leaving the team to lean heavily on its depth and on Traores ability to settle things down when the game tightened. [Read more 🡒]
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Michael Porter Jr. and the Nets have been working through extension talks since July 6, but the sides still have not found common ground. The delay has only sharpened the conversation around his future in Brooklyn, especially after a career year in which he averaged 24.2 points and 7.1 rebounds. For a player coming off that kind of season, the talent is obvious. The challenge is figuring out what kind of long-term commitment the market is willing to make.
What makes this situation tricky for Brooklyn is that the longer the talks drag on, the more the trade chatter grows around Porter. Teams considering a move for him would have to weigh both his production and the possibility that he could be on a short clock after the trade deadline. That combination can make a deal harder to build, and it leaves the Nets in an awkward spot as they try to balance his value now against the uncertainty of where this all goes next. [Read more 🡒]
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His impact showed up in Brooklyns first win of the season, when he finished with 14 points, six rebounds and a block. He has also knocked down at least one three-pointer in every game so far, a steady sign of how quickly he has become part of the rotation as the Nets head into an upcoming matchup with the Knicks. [Read more 🡒]