It doesn’t rain that often in LA, but the Nets made everyone in Staples wear galoshes by dumping it on Thursday night.
Without Kevin Durant, the Nets put on a show in the Staples Center lights, taking down the Lakers, 109-98, in a complete team effort when five Nets (two off the bench) ended in double digits. At one point, the Nets led by 25.
James Harden, who scored 23 points, the team’s best mark, followed six rebounds and 11 assists in 38 minutes, was followed by Joe Harris, who played a decisive game in the depths, hitting 6 of 7 three to finish 21 points in 30 minutes , while Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot led the bank’s team with 15 points in 27 minutes off the bench, hitting five career trios.
“I only have open shots. Shooting them with confidence and hard work always pays off, ”said Luwawu-Cabarrot on his shooting night.
The Nets extended their current winning streak to five games – four on their West Coast trip – while improving to 19-12 this season and 8-7 on the road. With the defeat, the Lakers drops to 22-8.
The Nets praised their offensive firepower with some solid defense, holding the Lakers with 26.7 percent of three in the win.
“It is non-negotiable if we want to reach our best levels,” Steve Nash, from Nets, put together a consistent sequence of good defensive performances. “We have to accept it. We have to understand what we are trying to do, what our principles are, make correct readings and decisions and play together. The guys got better and turned the corner, but now, we are at least cleaner with our decision-making, connections with each other and starting to have little snippets in the game where our defense hasn’t been fighting. “
The Nets had a slow start to the first, shooting 1 of 7 from the field, but stabilized offensively when Harden started with a series of three and disputes played for the basket. As Brooklyn’s attack began to flow, his defense fought back against Lakers backdoor cuts that led to a Steve Nash timeout with 2:28 remaining.
After the timeout, the adjustments were evident as his attack continued to establish itself with Luwawu-Cabarrot serving as an initial x factor. Brooklyn ended the first with a 13-4 run, with 57.1% of shots in total, 55.6% in depth and a 31-24 lead.
With Brooklyn’s attack consistent, the Nets opened the second with a solid defense and holding the Lakers with just three points in a period of almost four minutes. As the second progressed, Harris heated up and delivered a pair of three, making him the fastest Net player to hit 100 three in a season (31 games) in the process. Although the Lakers’ attack increased in the final minutes, the Nets still headed for the break with an 11 point lead of 54.8 percent in total and 52.4 percent in depth. 11 made three, registering only seven turns.
Brooklyn took its offensive firepower to the third, but again what made the difference was the defense. The Nets not only held the Lakers with 21 points in the third quarter, but forced seven turns. The Nets beat the Lakers 26-21 in the third, going into the fourth with a 16 point advantage.
When Brooklyn started the last 12 minutes of play with 16 points, the Nets did not lose their foot on the accelerator at either end, ending the game with an 11 point victory. As a team, the Nets ended the victory with 49.4 percent overall and 46.2 percent deep. Brooklyn recorded 13 sales in the process.
Keeping the Lakers under 100 points (narrowly!) Was worthy of a modest celebration for Brooklyn’s defense.
“It was time. It’s time to turn the corner defensively,” said Kyrie Irving. “No team is going to win anything in this league if it doesn’t stop. It was time. We heard them loud and clear in the last few games. And it’s a of our points of emphasis when we go to the games is just stay connected no matter what. Follow the game plan. We trust that. We already talked about it. So go out there and play, play for free and run. But we will hold each other accountable.
“I know you see it on TV or when you’re watching it: we’re aiming at each other. But this is what we need to stay committed to certain guys. We need that level of courage. It is normal to be angry at the defensive end and to be physical in the league. We are not friends with these guys who try to win. So let’s continue. “
The game also saw the debut of Andre Roberson, the 6’7 ”defensive specialist who entered the trash and played just over four minutes, achieving a rebound and a block. He wore No. 22. The other Nets hired defense specialist, Iman Shumpert, was in uniform, but he, like Kevin Durant, is recovering from a hamstring injury.
Steve Nash provides Kevin Durant with an injury update: ‘There is no schedule yet.’
Before Thursday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Steve Nash made an update on Kevin Durant, who missed the last three games due to a slight strain on the left hamstring.
Nash said there is no set timetable for the return of the Nets superstar, but the team’s performance team wants to see an improved strength, while noting that there will be some other progressions before he is available to play.
“I think what they want is improved strength,” said Nash. “Usually, when you have a small injury like that, there is a strength deficit and until you have that strength back, it is not necessarily safe to play again. He has to do some progression, but other than that, we just have to monitor and see how it goes. The bright side is that he has had a few days off now and is getting better, but there is no deadline yet to see him again. ”
Now, take a look at some movie.
The cinema room
The Brooklyn drive-and-kick machine was a well-oiled monster in Los Angeles. Brooklyn hit 18 trios in the game, 11 of them occurring in the first half. The Lakers’ spins were strangely wrong, which I assume has to do with the loss of Anthony Davis. He is, after all, the Lakers handyman bandaid, who can cover up mistakes while giving teammates the confidence to play aggressively in defense. Regardless, with the Lakers making basic mistakes, the Nets eagerly took the opportunity and ran the attack through the corners.
I tweeted during the game: You cannot, I repeat, CANNOT help in the strong corner against James Harden. He is a good passer – undoubtedly one of the top three passers in the league – to give easy opportunities with a shorter distance pass. The Lakers did this in the second half and immediately received a three-point bomb from Joe Harris in their crates.
The piece below is just a masterful find from Kyrie Irving to Tyler Johnson in the corner. Notice how Irving waits until the last possible to draw aid (Talen-Horton Tucker) before moving on to TJ.
Brooklyn soared 49% during the trip along the west coast. Against the best defense of the championship, the Lakers, that strong number of shots did not flinch at all.
Harris in a string of stretch marks
We recently wrote a lot about Joe Harris, but Joey Buckets is growing. He hit 6 out of 7 on Thursday and now, in the last five games, he is shooting close to 60 percent, to be precise, 58.1 percent, in the depths. For the season, the 29-year-old is shooting better than 50 percent and is the league’s best 3-point shooter. And after Thursday, he’s number 4 on the all-time list, having overtaken Steph Curry and Drazen Petrovic in the past few days. Yes, we continue to write because it is so extraordinary.
After the game, after a video show with TNT, Harris talked about how the defeat of the Nets to the humble Pistons on February 9 was a great turning point for the team.
“I think that after our game against Detroit, it was obviously a game where we fought very badly in defense and it was kind of, not a breaking point,” said Joe Harris, “but it just happened several times up to that point and I think after that game only the focus level, the attention to detail and the intensity on the defensive end really increased and it started with that Indiana game. “
KD meme game
Wearing a new sweatshirt, with a wrinkle press still showing, Kevin Durant became a meme machine when, after another impressive ride from James Harden to the edge, he adopted a WTF look, or WTH if you prefer. Do we like.
As SpongeBob would say …
What is the next
The Nets return to action on Sunday, February 21, when the team plays again under the lights of the Staples Center, again, against the Los Angeles Clippers. The game is scheduled to start at 8 pm Eastern Time and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN. Then it is back home in Brooklyn, where, for the first time this season, some fans will be in the building to watch the battle between the Nets and the Kings.
For a different perspective, check out Silver Screen and Roll, our sister site on SB Nation that covers the Los Angeles Lakers.