Dorian Finney-Smith had missed 4 straight video games due to a nagging left ankle sprain. The veteran ahead had not performed in six of the Nets‘ past seven contests overall because of the injury, and he felt every bit of it.
“It’s a troublesome battle,” Finney-Smith stated. “You know, they’re telling me I’m older now. It takes — the body takes a little bit more time to recover. You can’t just tie your shoe tighter and go back out there and think everything is going to be good like it used to be.”
The 31-year-old was not listed on Brooklyn’s Saturday afternoon damage report. Barring an unexpected setback, he’ll return to the beginning lineup on Sunday in opposition to the Milwaukee Bucks at Barclays Heart.
“You know, it’s a long season,” Finney-Smith stated. “Nobody’s really 100%, so I’m pretty sure everybody got some nags and bumps and bruises, but I feel better and I’m ready to play.”
Will probably be Finney-Smith’s first look since Nov. 27. Brooklyn is 4-4 with out him within the lineup this season.
“You know what Doe brings,” Trendon Watford stated. “Doe brings toughness, just his veteran leadership that he brings to any team. I think that’s what he’s made his name off of, just him being a leader and him being that tough guy, him just being a knock-down shooter and knock-down defender. We know what Doe brings every night, and we definitely can use it.”
Regardless of lacking prolonged time, Finney-Smith stays on tempo to have his greatest season since becoming a member of the Nets. He has averaged 10.7 factors, 4.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists in his first 15 appearances whereas capturing 46.7% from the sphere and 42.2% from 3-point vary. He has a plus-18.7 web score in 435 minutes this season, the fourth-highest within the NBA getting into Saturday’s video games.
“Toughness, personality, experience, trust, you can go on and on and on,” head coach Jordi Fernandez stated. “He means a lot for the group. For us as coaches, we’re very comfortable having him on the court and having him active. Whether he’s on the court, on the bench, his presence is very important, and his teammates feel the same way. Whenever he is back, active and playing, we’ll be very happy to have him.”
Finney-Smith’s 5.5 3-point makes an attempt per sport are additionally a profession excessive. He defined after Saturday’s apply in Brooklyn how he was capable of develop a faster set off by the years — and Fernandez’s half in enhancing his confidence this season.
“I’d say, just, I put the work in this summer, obviously, but the coaching staff and this team, everybody just be on me when I turn down shots and I’m not aggressive,” Finney-Smith stated. “When your team believes in you that much, it feels good. You know, Coach, he’s telling my family, ‘Man, if he doesn’t shoot the ball,’ so now you got wifey and my mom and them telling me, ‘Coach telling me you need to shoot,’ so he’s even creeping into my house.
“It’s mental. You know, I can’t have [Cam Thomas’] mindset. CT, I wish I had his mindset, that’s a great mindset to have, but it isn’t me, you know? But I’m working on it, work in progress.”
Initially Printed: December 7, 2024 at 4:00 PM EST
