Mikel Brown Jr.’s first NBA game gave Brooklyn a quick look at why Louisville fans were so high on him.
The former Cardinals standout made his official debut for the Nets on Tuesday night after missing the first three preseason games with an ankle injury. Brown had already returned for Brooklyn’s final preseason game, and against his first regular-season competition, he showed the same burst and shooting touch that made him a five-star freshman in college.
He came off the bench and entered with 3:57 left in the first quarter, then wasted little time making his presence felt. Brown curled to the top of the key, caught the ball in stride, took one dribble and blasted to the rim for a finish through contact, drawing a foul for his first NBA basket with 2:20 left in the opening quarter.
He wasn’t done there. Early in the second quarter, Brooklyn ran a two-man action with Brown and Julius Randle. When Randle’s defender helped on the post-up, Randle kicked it out to Brown on the wing, and Brown drilled a contested NBA 3-pointer.
Those were his only two made shots of the night. Brown finished 2-of-8 from the field and 1-of-3 from deep, but the raw tools were obvious. In 18 minutes, he totaled 6 points, 3 assists and 3 rebounds.
Afterward, Brown said the main adjustment is tempo.
“Yeah, really just got to slow down, pick my spots better,” stated Brown. “I’ve been talking to Julius about it, just trying to slow down.
Everything I want is there. It’s just all about me being patient.”
For Louisville fans who watched him become a major name in college basketball, the NBA debut was more flash than polish. Still, Brown gave the Nets enough in game one to show why his first season at the next level is going to be worth tracking.
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