Ben Simmons, stepping again into the Nets‘ starting lineup at point guard following Sunday’s Dennis Schröder commerce, acquired off to a promising begin on Monday towards the Cleveland Cavaliers at Barclays Heart.
Moments after the opening tip, the 6-10 guard jumped Darius Garland’s passing lane, stole the ball, then threw down a two-handed slam on the different finish. Seconds later, whereas pushing the ball in transition, he threw a candy no-look go to Cam Johnson within the left nook to offer Brooklyn a 5-0 benefit.
The Nets truly capitalized on quite a few Cleveland miscues early and located themselves up 12-5 towards the perfect crew within the Japanese Convention with 8:14 left within the first quarter. Nevertheless, that’s the place the highlights — and the competitiveness — ended for Brooklyn in an embarrassing 130-101 loss.
“We started the game well, and then we got punched in the face, and then we didn’t have the togetherness, the fight, to get back and keep punching,” head coach Jordi Fernandez stated. “And it is extremely disappointing, because whoever wears our jersey will fight more than that, and if not, you will not be part of this club, whether you start, you come off the bench, or whatever the case may be. And we didn’t compete out there. We were not selfless, and for sure we didn’t support each other.”
After a lackluster effort within the opening minutes, the Cavaliers wakened at each ends of the court docket and ended the primary quarter on a 32-5 run to take a 37-17 lead into the second. Issues solely acquired worse for Brooklyn from there. They continued to unravel, as Cleveland outscored it 35-23 within the second quarter to take a commanding 32-point benefit into the locker room at halftime.
With just below a minute left within the first half, All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell cut up Jalen Wilson and Day’Ron Sharpe off the dribble, acquired deep into the paint, cocked again the ball so far as he might, then threw down one of many nastiest dunks of the 2024-25 season with Simmons, Sharpe and Trendon Watford within the neighborhood. That summed up what was simply the worst half of Nets basketball this season.
And it seems buying and selling away a flooring normal of Schröder’s caliber, for a crew already missing offensive firepower and shot creation, has dire penalties. Brooklyn had extra turnovers (14) than made subject targets (13) within the first half towards Cleveland. So, if the purpose in buying and selling Schröder to the Golden State Warriors was to rapidly tank, mission achieved. It doesn’t get any uglier than what Fernandez’s crew showcased via two quarters of play towards Cleveland, however maybe that’s precisely what normal supervisor Sean Marks desires.
“Dennis is gone, so that’s out of my mind. I don’t care,” Fernandez stated. “I love him, I’m happy for him, but he’s not here, so right now, I’m fighting with my guys, and the ones that are here, they’ll have to fight. And they don’t fight, there’s going to be consequences.”
Fernandez ended the primary half with Simmons, Wilson, Sharpe, Watford and two-way ahead Jaylen Martin on the court docket. That type of lineup ought to inform you all the pieces you must know concerning the route this franchise has determined to take.
The Nets truly gained the third quarter 37-32, however an excessive amount of harm had been achieved by then. They nonetheless trailed 104-77 getting into the ultimate body and by no means acquired nearer than 21 factors. They allowed Cleveland to shoot 53.1% for the sport, and turned the ball over 22 instances, which led to 34 factors for the guests.
“We just can’t put ourselves in that kind of hole, and we know that,” Cam Johnson stated.
Brooklyn fell to 10-16 with the loss and has now dropped three straight and 5 of six. It’ll return to motion on Thursday towards the Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Area. Watford didn’t return to the sport after halftime due to left hamstring soreness.
Johnson completed with a team-high 22 factors within the loss and Sharpe added 15 factors off the bench. Simmons, who performed till the ultimate buzzer, contributed 10 factors, 4 rebounds, eight assists and two steals in a season-high 31 minutes. Seven Cavaliers completed in double figures, led by Evan Mobley, who had 21 factors, 5 rebounds and two assists.
Initially Printed: December 16, 2024 at 10:20 PM EST
