With centers Nic Claxton and Day'Ron Sharpe out with injuries, Nets' lack of size is costly

The contrast couldn’t have been starker at Madison Square Garden. Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns muscled his way through the Nets’ frontcourt Sunday while the Nets centers watched in street clothes.

Nic Claxton is out through at least Friday with a lower back strain. Day’Ron Sharpe has yet to play this season with a hamstring strain although his status is expected to be updated this week. Noah Clowney, the team’s only healthy center, is coming off the bench.

It hasn’t caused all the Nets’ issues in losing five of their last six games heading into Tuesday’s home game with the Hornets. But Claxton’s injury last week further illuminated a growing problem. The Nets’ lack of size is leaving them vulnerable at the rim on both ends of the floor.

“The reality is this is part of the NBA. Guys will be out.” coach Jordi Fernandez said. “The good thing is, it's not major injuries. [Claxton and Sharpe] will be back soon, and when they're back, we'll be happy to have them back. But right now, this is our reality, and we'll find a way to play.”

Entering Monday's games, the Nets are the league’s worst rebounding team and second-worst in points in the paint, a problem even with a healthy Claxton. Without him the last two games? They scored a combined 52 paint points in two games against the Knicks, two more than the Knicks’ entire Sunday total.

The Nets are also shooting 63% at the rim per Cleaning the Glass, 22nd in the NBA. Part of that is Fernandez's emphasis on the team taking more three-pointers but also a reflection on the lack of finishing ability or players who can do it consistently like Dennis Schroder or Cam Thomas.

There’s also a greater need to collectively rebound without Claxton or Sharpe. The Nets want to get out and run,  but that means there has to be a commitment for more players to crash the glass as much as quickly getting up court.

“We’ve got to get the ball to run in transition,” Ben Simmons said. “So, we’ve got to rebound first. You can't leak out.”

Simmons, at 6-10, and 6-7 Dorian Finney-Smith have played center at times this season with Clowney, but both are inefficient scorers inside. Simmons has been unwilling to shoot at times but is also averaging a career-low 5.8 rebounds per game.

The 6-10 Clowney has operated more on the perimeter on offense than the post. Forty-eight of his 76 shot attempts are three-pointers and he’s averaging just 3.2 rebounds in 16 minutes per game.

Teams are taking advantage of the smallish Nets.  Opponents are shooting 72.3% in the restricted area around the rim, third-worst in the league.

Yet as Claxton and Sharpe heal, the Nets have to take back more control of the paint. No matter how playing small benefits them, there will be games like Sunday where size matters, and they need a better answer.

“It's just the personnel we have, and I believe in all our guys,” Cam Johnson said. “The advantages they might have on offense, we can create advantages of our own on offense and we did at times. You just got to be better and we all know that.”

By Evan Barnes

evan.barnes@newsday.comevan_b

Evan Barnes covers the Nets for Newsday. He previously covered Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.