Nets Look to End a Five-Game Losing Streak at Home Against the Bulls
On Wednesday night, the Brooklyn Nets suffered a tough 116-113 loss to the Pelicans in New Orleans. This loss pushed the Nets’ losing streak to five games, and as they look ahead to Friday’s game against the Chicago Bulls, Brooklyn must be wondering when this abysmal season will come to a close. This Nets team was out in front against the Pelicans for the entire first half with 12 points as their largest lead, until New Orleans steadily kept themselves in the game to keep it thrilling at the end. Saddiq Bey tied the game up at 110 with a deep three, then gave the Pelicans the lead with an emphatic slam. Two Trey Murphy III free throws would give the Pelicans a four-point lead, until Drake Powell drilled a three for Brooklyn at the other end. Another two free throws, this time from Bey, would give New Orleans a three-point lead. Michael Porter Jr. tried to chuck up a game-tying shot to send the game to overtime, but missed, losing the game and pushing the Nets to 11-27. Heading into this matchup against the Bulls in Brooklyn, the Nets must look to regroup and finally put a win in the column.
Even though they lost, there are some positives from the Nets’ Wednesday night loss to the Pelicans. Six Nets scored in double digits. Powell went six for 10 from the field with 16 points, while Egor Dёmin also went six for 10 with 17 points. Porter Jr., Nic Claxton, and Cam Thomas combined for 46 points, while backup center Day'Ron Sharpe finished with 15 points and nine rebounds. Brooklyn shot 47 percent from the field and 37 percent from deep. Although they were outrebounded, allowed 25 free throw attempts, and committed two more turnovers than New Orleans, the Nets have to take this solid shooting night as a positive. It must be a group effort again with multiple guys in double-figure scoring to allow Brooklyn to win Friday’s matchup over the Bulls. The Nets will also need to do a much better job of rebounding if they want to end their losing streak. Claxton will need to step up in this department, as he had just six rebounds in their most recent loss while averaging nearly eight rebounds a game. Sharpe should be getting more minutes from head coach Jordi Fernández, as he’s been an excellent rebounder in the past few games. Pulling down 12 against the Dallas Mavericks and collecting 13 against the Memphis Grizzlies.
For Chicago, they're led by the dynamic duo of Josh Giddey and Nikola Vučević, as well as the rising sophomore Matas Buzelis. Giddey currently leads the team with 19 points a game and nine assists. He’s shooting 39 percent from three this season, which is a career-high. Vučević leads the team in rebounding at 35 years of age. His 16 points and nine rebounds a game are just a step below what he averaged last season with 18 pointsand 10 boards. Buzelis has seen an increase in minutes in his sophomore season, which has shown in his stats with numbers across nearly every category increased. He’s currently averaging 15 points, five rebounds, two assists, and a block while shooting 49 percent from the field. The Bulls aren’t haven’t the greatest of seasons; however, they’ve kept themselves in the Play-In Tournament conversation all season long. Chicago’s only two games under .500, they have the great role players in Ayo Dosunmu, Zach Collins, and Kevin Huerter that can keep them in the playoff conversation until the season’s end. They certainly have the manpower to send the Nets on a way to their sixth consecutive loss.
Two interesting matchups come to mind when these two franchises meet: Claxton against Vučević and Porter Jr. against Buzelis. For Claxton, he needs to pick up his rebounding efforts, especially against Vučević, who has over 10,500 rebounds in his 15 year career. The seventh-year Nets center needs to be more effective when it comes to getting offensive rebounds, which helps create second-chance opportunities for Porter Jr., Thomas, and other contributors. The 2023 NBA Champion forward must continue to be a bucket-getter while stopping Buzelis on the other end. Stopping a guy who’s shooting nearly 50 percent from the floor will help the Nets pick up more opportunities in this game. Giddey will be hard to stop; it will need to be a collective effort by Powell, Dёmin, and Terrance Mann.
These two teams met back on December 3rd, with Brooklyn coming away with the win, 113-103. Porter Jr. led the way with 33 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, two steals, and a block, while on the other end, Giddey finished with a 28-point triple-double. I think this is another close game for the Nets. Chicago wants to tie the season series against this Nets team and is hungry to stay in the Play-In conversation. However, it’s very likely Brooklyn snaps their losing streak and takes a huge win on their home turf.
