Nets' poor defense undercuts Cam Thomas' strong return in loss to Hornets
Nets guard Cam Thomas looks to pass the ball away from Hornets center Nick Richards and forward Brandon Miller during the second half of an NBA game on Saturday in Charlotte, N.C. Credit: AP/Matt Kelley
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — With their slim play-in tournament hopes hanging by even slimmer threads, the Nets got needed reinforcements on Saturday with Cam Thomas and Day’Ron Sharpe back from injury.
Thomas did his part with his scoring, but the Nets didn’t do theirs with another lackluster game on defense. The Hornets won, 110-99, at Spectrum Center and handed the Nets a second straight loss to a team outside the playoff or play-in picture.
Thomas had 31 points in 30:28 in his first game back after missing the previous six with a right ankle/mid-foot sprain. He looked comfortable from the beginning, making his first three shots and shooting 7-for-8 in a 17-point first quarter.
“It was good. I wish I played more, but it was a minutes restriction,” he said. “When you’re rolling like that, you want to keep going until you run out. It is what it is. Just trying to do the best I could in the minutes I was given tonight, so just got to keep it up for Cleveland tomorrow.”
The Nets have lost to the Grizzlies, Pistons and Wizards — all near the bottom of the league record-wise — in a six-day span.
Thomas had 17 points in the game’s first eight minutes and the Nets (25-39) led by as many as 12 points. The Hornets (16-48), who blew a 10-point fourth-quarter lead against the Wizards on Friday, then managed to give a sparse crowd something to cheer about besides updates on the Jumbotron from North Carolina’s win over Duke.
With the score tied at 45, the Nets gave up an 18-7 run to close the final 6:37 of the second quarter. They never threatened again, and when they got within 96-90 in the fourth, they gave up an offensive rebound to Vasilije Micic, who whipped a behind-the-back pass to Aleksej Pokusevski for a three-pointer.
The Nets gave up 56 paint points and 26 fast-break points and allowed the Hornets, the fourth-worst shooting team in the league, to shoot 54.3% from the field.
“The game plan is to contain the dribble,” interim coach Kevin Ollie said. “You can’t give up straight line drives; there’s no defense in the world for that.”
Thomas’ scoring offset another night in which Mikal Bridges struggled against double-teams and a heavy minutes load. Bridges had 19 points but shot 6-for-18 in 40:55, the fifth consecutive game in which he’s played at least 35.
Nic Claxton had 14 points and 10 rebounds and Dennis Schroder had 12 points and seven assists. With Lonnie Walker IV out because of illness, the Nets’ bench had only 15 points.
Miles Bridges led the Hornets with 24 points and rookie Brandon Miller added 23. They totaled 16-for-21 shooting on two-point field goals.
Thomas was 5-for-10 on three-pointers in the game but shot 5-for-16 overall after the first quarter. Still, his presence and offense were welcomed back.
“You know what he does best and it comes with ease with him,” Mikal Bridges said. “He came back and just straight to it like he never left, so it’s good to have him out there. We’re going to need him. We need everybody.”
It’s why Thomas’ return alone can’t save the Nets’ play-in hopes. They didn’t have Cam Johnson (sprained right ankle) and he’ll remain out through Sunday’s game against the Cavaliers in Cleveland as he gets treatment in Brooklyn. Walker’s status for Sunday remains in question.
But the lack of defensive effort during the past week is a bigger worry. The Nets’ play-in hopes are on thin ice and in danger of melting soon, with all but one of the next 10 games away from Barclays Center.
Evan Barnes covers the Nets for Newsday. He previously covered Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
