"Just a true vet," head coach Jordi Fernández said. "You see him right now, he's passing the ball to Drake and we're not asking him to do it. So that shows you the type of veteran he is, his leadership. He holds him accountable and he wants him to get better. So that's very important for us. That leadership is priceless and we're very happy with him... He's doing his job every single day."
NEW YORK - Egor Demin scored 17 points, Noah Clowney added 16 and the Brooklyn Nets matched the franchise record for margin of victory, never trailing in a 127-82 romp over the short-handed Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday night. The 45-point victory tied the team record set Jan. 9, 1993, against Washington while the team was playing in New Jersey. The Nets have won four of six after opening 3-13. At home, they have won three of four after starting 0-9.
Brooklyn dominated Milwaukee, 127-82, Sunday night in a complete effort before 16,439 at Barclays Center. The win tied their biggest victory in franchise history, matching a 45-point rout of Washington on Jan. 9, 1993. Jordi Fernandez wasn't among them, the Nets head coach was out sick with the flu. But an effort like this from his young team likely buoyed his spirits, leading by as much as 45 and having four of their record five first-round picks on the floor late
"I hope to have fun with it," Hetzel said. "Working for Jordi has been some of the most fun I've ever had. The way he allows us as a staff to put our imprint on the team and have a voice. So, I feel comfortable speaking to the team directly with the amount that he gives us... I feel very comfortable with his system and stepping in."
"The Nets have $15 million in cap space and can create more, which has led to increased trade talks about using their room to absorb salary while receiving assets, sources said. The Nets, Pistons ($14.1 million trade exception) and Utah Jazz ($18.4 million trade exception) are the only teams with significant room that can take in larger deals and not be impacted by the apron," Charania wrote.
Rookies Drake Powell and Ben Saraf were nowhere to be found at Tuesday's Nets practice. Instead, they were a few miles East at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, getting G League minutes in Long Island's 112-107 loss to the College Park Skyhawks. For Powell, now a regular in the Nets' rotation, it marked his first G League appearance. Saraf, meanwhile, returned to a setting he knows well, heading back to Long Island for the first time since mid-November to get needed reps during Brooklyn's extended layoff before Friday's matchup with the Dallas Mavericks.
It was announced today that Jakob Poeltl will miss tomorrow night's action against the Brooklyn Nets for lower back injury management, an injury that has plagued the 30-year old center all season. Resting him on the first night of a back-to-back against the Brooklyn Nets will allow him to be ready for a Monday matchup with the Cleveland Cavaliers, who sit just behind Toronto in the standings.
Nic Claxton had 18 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists for his first NBA triple-double and the Brooklyn Nets beat the Boston Celtics 113-105 on Friday night for their first victory in the NBA Cup in-season tournament. Michael Porter Jr. scored 33 points, and Noah Clowney had 19 to help Brooklyn snap a nine-game losing streak against Boston. Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 26 points but was limited to 32 minutes because of trouble.