Early within the Nets‘ 116-99 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday, the best scorer inside Fiserv Forum wasn’t Giannis Antetokounmpo, Myles Turner or Nic Claxton. With Cam Thomas and Michael Porter Jr. sidelined by accidents, and Egor Demin out after his breakout efficiency the night time earlier than, it was fellow rookie Danny Wolf who stepped into the lineup, stepped up and eventually had his second.
Regardless of flashing a sophisticated passing really feel for this stage of his growth, this was not an evening the place the 6-11 ahead appeared to distribute. Wolf got here out searching pictures, scoring from each angle and pouring in 17 factors in his first quarter-hour on 6-for-9 capturing, the strongest offensive begin of his first 5 NBA appearances.
Wolf’s capturing from lengthy vary stole the present. He shot 3-pointers with whole confidence, burying his first 4 and remaining excellent from deep till late within the second quarter. At 21, the oldest member of the Flatbush 5 helped gasoline Brooklyn’s 55.3 p.c first-half capturing efficiency, outscored solely by Antetokounmpo throughout that stretch.
Nonetheless, Wolf’s offensive burst was not sufficient to beat Antetokounmpo and Milwaukee’s firepower. The Bucks shot 64.3 p.c within the first half, had three gamers in double figures and took an 18-point lead into the break. And even with Brooklyn capturing properly as a group, it gave up 13 factors off 11 turnovers.
The Bucks led by as many as 32 factors within the third quarter as Antetokounmpo took over, scoring 11 of his game-high 29 factors and reminding everybody why he is among the league’s greatest. For Brooklyn’s rookies, it was a transparent instance of how far they nonetheless need to go.
However the Nets have been anticipated to be outgunned in a matchup like this, shorthanded and on the highway. Wolf’s breakout efficiency was the shock nobody anticipated. He completed with a career-high 22 factors, 4 rebounds and 4 assists in half-hour, and he wasn’t the one Brooklyn rookie to make a case for normal rotation minutes. Ben Saraf, again within the combine after a prolonged G League stretch and his personal harm absence, logged 29 minutes off the bench and added 10 factors with a game-high seven assists.
Saraf’s spotlight got here within the first quarter, when he misplaced the ball however chased down Ryan Rollins in transition for a block. Head coach Jordi Fernández has pushed him to carry extra constant defensive effort and performs like which can be precisely the response he’s searching for. The 19-year-old additionally hit two of his 4 makes an attempt from deep, displaying improved vary and confidence.
It was a far quieter night time for fellow rookie Drake Powell, scoring simply three factors off the bench in 21 minutes, however he had his second final Monday towards the Knicks. That leaves Nolan Traore because the lone Nets rookie who has but to make an impression in significant minutes. However his current surge within the G League is any indication, his probability might not be far off.
And that’s the purpose of this Nets season. Not the ultimate scores. Not the document. This yr in Brooklyn is about constructing for the longer term. No group desires to take a 17-point loss on the highway, however the Nets didn’t go away Fiserv Discussion board empty-handed. They left with a clearer sense that the youngsters are going to be simply tremendous.
