Nets nearly erase 25-point deficit but come up short against Cavaliers
How would the Nets respond after a lackluster defensive effort in Wednesday’s season opener at Charlotte? At first, it wasn’t the start head coach Jordi Fernández had hoped for. In the end, it was too little and too late, although Brooklyn came close to pulling off an improbable 25-point comeback.
Despite an inspired fourth-quarter rally, the Nets fell short, falling to 0-2 on the young season after a 131-124 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday at Barclays Center. Rookies Drake Powell and Danny Wolf sat out as they continue to recover from ankle injuries, but depth wasn’t the issue. For the second outing in a row, early errors in effort and defensive communication put Brooklyn in a hole it couldn’t really climb out of.
“Sometimes it’s too little, too late, but I thought it was a great fight today and we did a great job,” Cam Thomas said.
The Cavaliers opened the night by hitting six of their first seven shots, while the Nets stumbled to 3-for-8. When Thomas coughed up a turnover that led to a 3-pointer by Sam Merrill, Fernández had seen enough, calling his first timeout less than five minutes later, with his team already trailing 16-7.
Outside of Michael Porter Jr., there wasn’t much offense to speak of in the first quarter. Brooklyn looked disjointed and sloppy with the ball, committing nine turnovers in the period while allowing Cleveland to shoot 59.1 percent from the field. Meanwhile, the Nets shot just 40.9 percent on another shot attempt.
And the Cavaliers kept their foot on the gas to start the second. They made four three-pointers in the opening minutes, then Donovan Mitchell made contact on his fourth try from long range and sank all three free throws. At the 7:56 mark of the first half, Cleveland’s lead had grown to 17 – another significant gap for a Nets team still searching for defensive cohesion.
“It’s the responsibility of the coaches,” Fernández said. “We must continue to work to improve every day, give them positive lessons and empower them. »
Leading just 63-51 at halftime, Cleveland opened the third quarter with three consecutive 3-pointers to extend its lead to 21, the largest of the night to that point. By 8:14 a.m., the margin had increased to 25.
Brooklyn fought back in the third, fueled by Thomas’ scoring burst and fewer errors, but the story didn’t change. Cleveland caught fire, shooting 73.9% and sinking nine more 3s to take a 108-86 lead into the final frame.
Yet, despite all the frustration, Brooklyn wasn’t done fighting. And to Fernández’s credit, he didn’t let his team collapse.
The Nets, all but out, opened the fourth quarter on a 12-3 run to cut the deficit to 13 with 9:32 left, showing the kind of shooting and defensive intensity that should have been there all along. Porter then buried his fifth three-pointer of the night to make it an 11-point game with 8:03 to play, and moments later, Ziaire Williams hit his fifth from deep to cut the lead to 10 with 7:15 to play.
Brooklyn continued to chip away while Cleveland began to crack, getting within a point with 3:28 left before missing a remarkable comeback. Ultimately, the Cleveland veteran’s composure got him across the finish line.
“I’m really proud of the guys who fought until the end,” Williams said. “I just have to keep improving from now on.”
The Nets won the fourth quarter 38-23, shooting 65.2 percent from the field and hitting seven threes while holding Cleveland to 26.3 percent and forcing four turnovers. If they had played with this level of intensity from the start, the result could have been different.
Thomas and Porter scored 33 and 31 points, respectively, showing how powerful they can be as a scoring duo, while Williams added 25 points and made six threes. Rookie Egor Demin had a quiet night through three quarters, but came alive in the fourth, going 3-for-4 from deep to keep Brooklyn within striking distance.
The road to Brooklyn won’t get any easier from here. A back-to-back weekend against the San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets will quickly reveal whether the growth shown Friday was real. While this loss will sting considering everything they have left on the table, the Nets finally showed signs of understanding what it takes to defend and compete for a full 48 minutes.
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