Nets need to find fast lane after bumpy road trip
Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) and Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton (33) battle for a rebound during the first half of an NBA basketball game Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Credit: AP/Rick Bowmer
If Nets coach Jacque Vaughn had any late adds to his Christmas list, he’d ask for good health after seeing his team limp to the end of a 1-4 road trip.
“That would be helpful for us,” Vaughn said after Monday’s loss to the Jazz. “We’ve been wearing some guys pretty thin this early in the year unfortunately, and tonight definitely the toll added up.”
The Nets played this five-game trip without Lonnie Walker IV (left hamstring strain) or Dennis Smith Jr. (upper back sprain). Both remained out Wednesday night along with Ben Simmons, who has missed 20 consecutive games due to a nerve impingement in his lower back.
But while the Nets could use Smith and Walker soon, they also need a reset after ending a trip on a three-game losing streak. Lack of rest won’t help with five more games in eight days including four at home — starting Wednesday night against the Knicks at Barclays Center.
It also starts a stretch where seven of the next 10 games are against teams with winning records and the Nets are 6-9 against teams at or above .500.
The road trip showed how the Nets lost what kept them sharp: Defending the three-point line, rebounding, balance on offense. Coming home, in principle, should restore them but not when their foundation will keep getting tested.
“You got to learn from it, and get ready,” Mikal Bridges said. ‘Get ready for the next games, you know? You’ve got to let this one go and learn from it.
Of the next five games, there’s two back-to-backs. In between those back-to-backs, the Nets have two days off before facing the Pistons on Tuesday in Detroit and the Bucks at home Wednesday.
After facing the Knicks, the Nets host the Nuggets on Friday — the same Nuggets who ran them off the court in Denver last week — and the Pistons on Saturday. The good news is it’s a home back-to-back compared to the road-and-home one next week.
The bad news is Barclays Center alone won’t hide the struggles. The change of scenery is nice but the Nets need an attitude adjustment or their home fans will see why things have been so brutal.
“We just need to take more pride defensively,” Nic Claxton said. “Just keeping dudes in front of us, straight line drives, they’re getting in [the paint] too easy, which is causing us to rotate too much and it’s giving them rebounds, threes. I think it’s just a pride thing honestly.”
The Nets better hope they regain some soon. The only saving grace of this five-game stretch is two games against the Pistons, who have a 24-game losing streak.
Should the Pistons lose Thursday, they have a chance to tie history Saturday with a 26th consecutive loss, which equals the most in an NBA single season. It would benefit the Nets to enter that game after a win than a loss.
It’s also why they know it’s imperative to fix their issues this week. Vaughn said the Nets have to get back to basics to improve their effort both on defense and rebounding.
“I think the lessons learned across the board is being able to take care of your body so that you're able to play that piece of it,” he said. “Being able to be in a position to contribute whatever minutes that you play is huge for us. And then the commitment to, I'll keep preaching, the physicality piece.”
Part of that will be easier if they get Walker and Smith back soon. But even if that late Christmas wish of better health is granted before Monday, the Nets still have to get right with who they have.
If not, then the upcoming road could be even more treacherous as winter takes hold.
Evan Barnes covers the Nets for Newsday. He previously covered Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
