What to Watch For: New York Knicks vs. Brooklyn Nets December 11

Tuesday, December 11^th, 2012

Pre Game News and Notes

New York Knicks vs. Brooklyn Nets

The Knicks will look to get some revenge in round two of the Battle of the Boroughs as they travel to Brooklyn to take on the Nets.  The first time around, the Nets won a hard fought overtime game 96-89.  In the first meeting, it was the Knicks who were not at full strength; tonight it will be the Nets who will be playing short-handed.  Here are some things to watch tonight:

-Jason Kidd in the Lineup

In the first matchup of the season, the Knicks were without guard Jason Kidd.  Thankfully, this time they will have Kidd at their disposal and he should assume his regular role in the starting lineup. 

Without Kidd in the lineup, the Knicks offense struggled; the ball movement was stagnant and the offense was over reliant on isolations, especially with Carmelo Anthony.  With Kidd in the lineup, the ball movement is crisper and everyone is on top of their game.

Kidd also brings veteran intangibles that are irreplaceable for the Knicks.  He is 39 years old, but he has the hands of a 24 year old and can still make things happen on the defensive end of the court and still makes precision passes not every point guard is capable of. 

-Attack the Paint

The Nets this time will be the team without a key piece in their lineup, as starting center Brook Lopez will miss the game with a foot injury.  It will be the sixth straight game that Lopez misses, meaning Andray Blatche will take over at center for the Nets tonight again.

The Nets are 1-4 without Lopez in the lineup, with their only win coming against a lowly Orlando Magic squad.  The Nets will also have Reggie Evans in the starting lineup, replacing Kris Humphries to try and replace the defense lost with Lopez sitting out.

Without Lopez in the lineup, the Nets are allowing 11.5 more points per game; 102.2 without Lopez compared to 90.7 with him.  The shooting percentages also see a drastic change without Lopez in the lineup, as the Nets are allowing teams to shoot 50.7 percent from the field without him compared to 44.9 with him. 

Blatche has filled in admirably for Lopez, scoring 17.2 points per game to go along with 9.8 rebounds, but he leaves a lot to be desired on the defensive end, blocking only 0.4 shots per game compared to the 2.5 Lopez provides.

-Bench Play

With the injuries the Nets have, their starting lineup will be shifted around much like the Knicks in the first meeting.  That means that their bench is weakened, meaning the Knicks have to take advantage.

Since Lopez has been out, the productivity of the Nets bench players has suffered as well.  Jerry Stackhouse has been shooting 30.4 percent from the field and C.J Watson is averaging only 1.5 assists and shooting 37.5 percent.

The Knicks bench has been coming alive of late, with Steve Novak finding his touch and Rasheed Wallace giving strong minutes as well.  J.R. Smith has struggled with his shot recently, but the effort he gives on defense and how he fills other stats still helps the Knicks.

With the Nets lineup change, the Knicks now have the superior bench and will have to take advantage as they cannot rely on Carmelo Anthony, Raymond Felton and Tyson Chandler solely to carry the offense.  

Nets Can't Get Revenge on Warriors

nypost.com

Nets vs. Warriors Post Game Recap 12/7

Final Score: Warriors 109 Nets 102

For the second time this season the Brooklyn Nets were unable to beat the Golden State Warriors, as the Nets couldn’t get revenge on the Warriors at home after losing to them on the West Coast earlier in the season.

Like on the West Coast Stephen Curry killed the Nets outplaying Deron Williams by scoring 28 points on 10 for 19 shooting, as in two games Curry has scored 53 points against the Nets, as Brooklyn will be happy to not have to play him again this season.

Deron Williams followed up his season-high 33 point game against the Thunder by filling out a pretty nice stat sheet scoring 23 points on eight for 22 shooting with eight assists, and five rebounds. The problem for Williams like most of the season was his shot, as Williams was only two for 10 from three-point land.

Joe Johnson had his best game of the season in the loss on Friday, as Johnson had a season-high 32 points on 12 for 23 shooting to go along with five rebounds, but despite the great game from Johnson it wasn’t enough to get the win.

Ex-Knick David Lee had a monster game posting a monster double-double with 30 points on 14 for 22 shooting, and grabbed 15 rebounds, as the former double-double machine for the Knicks usually plays well in New York.

The Nets also got a monster double-double from one of their big men, as Andray Blatche continued his great play filling in for Lopez with 22 points on eight for 13 shooting with 15 rebounds.

With Blatche in the starting lineup the bench scored suffered on Friday, as the Nets bench was outscored by Jarrett Jack alone who torched the Nets for 15 points on seven for 12 shooting. Jack Lead the Warriors bench which outscored the Nets bench 32 to 13.

The Nets will look to snap their losing streak on Sunday against the Milwaukee Bucks, and their star backcourt of Brandon Jennings, and Monta Ellis.

Nets Get Thunderstruck

Brooklyn Nets vs Oklahoma City Thunder Post Game Recap 12/4


The Brooklyn Nets fell to 11-6 as they lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder 117-111 in Brooklyn. The Nets were once again without Brook Lopez with a strained right foot for the 3rd straight game, as well as Reggie Evans who was suffering from the flu.

The Nets played awful defense in the first half, allowing the Thunder to shoot 65% from the field and trailed 61-48 at the half. They were unable to keep the Thunder out of the paint, as Westbrook who finished with 25 points and Durant who finished with 32 points got to the line a combined 20 times. Deron Williams struggled with keeping Westbrook infront of him all night, and the help defense which came late most of the time led to a wide open Sefolosha. On offense, the Nets primarily stayed out of the paint, shooting 34 three pointers. The Nets hit 14 of them, most coming in the 3rd quarter where the Nets made their run to cut the defecit to 2. With Evans out, rebounding the ball would have seemed to be troublesome for the Nets, but all the three pointers they shot led to long rebounds, which the Nets grabbed 16 of, 40 rebounds total. The Thunder only managed to grab 2 offensive rebounds and 33 in total. This odd rebounding effort allowed the Nets to stay in the game and let the game come down to the 4th quarter. Under 2:00 minutes left in the 4th, a close goaltending call on Kris Humphries on a Kevin Durant layup allowed the Thunder to go up 110-106, which sealed the deal.

BRIGHTSPOTS

Andray Blatche, who started in place for Lopez, continued to play well. Blatche finished the game with 19 points and 11 rebounds, 8 of which were offensive rebounds. Deron Williams also finally found his shooting touch as all season he had been struggling. Williams hit 5-9 from three point land finishing with 33 points and 7 assists. Along with Williams, Gerald Wallace also found his shooting touch in the 3rd quarter, shooting 4-7 from three point land. Mirza Teletovic, saw a lot of action in this game, and played well. Mirza shot 3-6 from the field for 8 points. Mirza will need to continue to play well due to Broo Lopez's history with injury.

QUESTIONMARKS

Brooklyn was the 2nd best defense in opponents ppg, but allowing the Thunder to score 117 was just atrocious. The Nets struggled on defense in almost every phase, from the guards not being able to keep the Thunder's perimeter players out of the paint, to our big men not being able to stay with their man. Serge Ibaka went 8-12 from the field and had two highlight dunks. Ibaka either got a wide open jump shot or an easy dunk on the offensive end.

Joe Johnson continued to struggle shooting the ball as well. When the Nets win easily, it's usually because JJ is on his game, and shooting well but this seems to be a rarity. JJ went 1-7 from 3 point land, and only started to hit jump shots in the 4th. Along with his iffy shooting, he seems scared to attack the basket, and didn't shoot one free throw. Infact, outside of Deron who shot 10 free throws, the Nets shot a combined 13 free throws.

It was also questionable rotation decisions by Avery Johnson in the 4th quarter that led to this loss. Blatche who played well, sat a little more than half the 4th quarter from 8:43 to 2:32. Blatche, who had been playing well all night, was substituted for Kris Humphries. The rationale was that they needed defense on the court, however that is something Humphries and the rest of the Nets didn't do all game. Along with this, Jerry Stackhouse played 30 minutes and finished with 8 points on 2-6 shooting. Stackhouse played down the stretch in the 4th quarter and hardly contributed at all.

After losing to both the Thunder and Heat, it's clear the Nets are not yet in their tier. They will have to get healthy and make improvements both on offense and defense but it was good to see where they stand against the NBA's elite.

Up next for the Nets are the 10-7 Warriors, who come to Brooklyn on Friday.

Nets Can't Handle the Heat in Miami

sun-sentinel.com

Nets vs. Heat Post Game Recap 12/1

The Nets were unable to handle the Heat in South Beach without Lopez, as their winning streak has been snapped at five games with the 102-89 loss on Saturday night.

After a very good first half for the Nets it was the polar opposite in the second half, as with their fifth game in seven days the Nets looked tired and were hammered after halftime being outscored 52-30.

The Miami Heat’s two superstars LeBron James and Dwayne Wade came to play against the Nets with both of them having great games. Wade was the leading scoring in the game putting up 34 points on 14 for 20 shooting with seven assists. James had one of his classic overall good games scoring 21 points on eight for 15 shooting with nine rebounds and six assists.

The Nets were led on offense by Andray Blatche getting his second straight start for the injured Lopez, as Blatche had yet another strong game scoring a team-high 20 points on eight for 12 shooting with eight rebounds.

Deron Williams shooting woes continue to hamper his play, as Williams only scored 11 points on a bad three for 11 shooting, but did notch his seven double-double of the season which leads the team because Williams did a good job setting up teams earning him 12 assists.

Joe Johnson had yet another poor game against the Heat like earlier in the season, as Johnson who has been playing well didn’t do that on Saturday only scoring 12 points on five for 14 shooting, as in two games against the Heat Johnson is only nine for 28.

Gerald Wallace had another pretty good on the offensive end despite not shooting the ball from three-point land well only going one for six, Wallace was able to score 13 points on five for 11 shooting with nine rebounds.

The Nets will have another tough task on Tuesday night, as they will have to play last years Western Conference Champions the Oklahoma City Thunder and their superstar Kevin Durant, with it still being unclear weather or not Brook Lopez will be playing.

Nets Beat Magic to Extend Winning Streak

sbnation.com

Nets vs. Magic Post Game Recap 11/30

The Nets were able to go down to Florida and keep their winning streak alive making it five straight wins by beating the Magic 98-86, as the Nets finish off a great month of November going 11-4.

The Nets were led by another stellar game from Joe Johnson who has played much better in four of his last five games. Johnson scored a game-high 22 points on 10 for 16 shooting, and added five assists.

With Brook Lopez sitting out with his foot injury Gerald Wallace really picked up the scoring slack for the Nets. Wallace caught fire from the field scoring 20 points on seven for nine shooting including five for six from beyond the arc.

Andray Blatche seemed to slide into the starting rotation at center for Lopez with no problem, as Blatche continued his good play this time with the starting five by scoring 14 points on six for 14 shooting, and also grabbed nine rebounds.

Deron Williams with his banged up wrist didn’t look for his shot to much in the game only shooting the ball nine times, but did only have to play 30 minutes much less than normal, and hopefully the wrist will heal soon for Deron.

The bench unit without Blatche didn’t do much scoring, but Reggie Evans once again had a great rebounding game off the bench grabbing 10 rebounds making it his fifth straight game with double-digit rebounds.

The Nets will be in for a big test on Saturday against the defending world champion Miami Heat team, as the Nets will be without Brook Lopez and their winning streak maybe in serious jeopardy.

Nets Survive a Fight in Boston

nydailynews.com

Nets vs. Celtics Post Game Recap 11/28

The Brooklyn Nets were able to pick up their 4th straight win in Boston over the Celtics 95-83, as the Nets showed that they are in fact a good team, and won’t be pushed around by the Celtics.

The Nets showed some serious toughness in the second quarter after a harmless Kris Humphries foul on Kevin Garnett lead to Rajon Rondo pushing Humphries in to the stands with a semi-brawl starting out, as Gerald Wallace got involved with Rondo and Garnett coming to the aid of Humphries. The fighting led to Rondo being ejected for the Celtics, and Humphries and Wallace being ejected for the Nets.

On a basketball note the fighting overshadowed an impressive win for the Nets who after a big win over the Knicks at home went up to Boston and won by double-digits, and had a 16 point lead at the time of the ejections.

Joe Johnson picked up the slack for the Nets after the ejections of two members of their starting five, as Johnson bounced back from a poor game against the Knicks to lead the Nets in scoring with 18 points on six for 14 shooting, and added six assists with four rebounds.

Deron Williams struggles with shooting the ball continues due to the right wrist injury, as Williams only scored eight points on three for 12 shooting, and could probably use some time off to get the wrist right.

Brook Lopez had to leave the game early after hurting his foot in the third quarter, and is expected to miss two games, but on a note the injury doesn’t appear to be related to the one that kept him out most of last year. Before Lopez had to leave the game he was having one of his better rebounding games of the season, as he had 10 rebounds in just 17 minutes.

With most of the starting lineup having to leave the game early the Nets got a huge lift from their bench which outscored the Celtics bench by a huge 52-18 margin.

Jerry Stackhouse has certainly found the fountain of youth with his second straight monster game off the bench, as Stackhouse went five for six from downtown with a couple of free throws for 17 points.

Andray Blatche with no Lopez or Humphries for most of the game made the most of getting his extra minutes. Blatche had a nice double-double off the bench scoring 17 points on seven for 14 shooting with 13 rebounds.

Up next for the Nets will be the Orlando Magic, as the Nets will look to keep their winning streak going, and avoid a let down against a poor Magic team.

Nets Lose Final Game on West Coast Trip

sfgate.com

Nets vs. Warriors Post Game Recap 11/21

The Nets finished up their three game west coast trip losing to the Golden State Warriors 102-93, as the Nets finished the west coast trip only winning one out of the three games.

The Nets got off to a hot start shooting 73 percent in the first quarter, and a 30-18 lead heading into the second quarter, but went cold after that. The third quarter once again was a killer for the Nets, as they continue to be the worst third quarter team in the NBA by getting outscored 33-20.

Offensively the Nets were lead by their young center Brook Lopez who shot the ball very well from the field, as he scored a team high 22 points on 10 for 16 shooting, but Lopez didn’t contribute much on the boards only grabbing three.

The backcourt match-up of Deron Williams and Joe Johnson vs. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson went in the favor of the young Golden State back court in a big way.

Deron Williams who is battling an elbow injury only scored nine points, and shot four for 12 from the field, and couldn’t stop the Warriors point guard Curry who scored a game-high 25 points on seven for 13 shooting.

The Johnson vs. Thompson match-up was just as bad for the Nets, as the point guard match-up was. Johnson continued his poor play thus far this season, as he scored 13 points on five for 13 shooting, and let the young Thompson score 23 points on 10 for 19 shooting.

Gerald Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse both sat out this game to rest for the upcoming home-stand, as without Wallace the Nets are a noticeably worse team on the defensive end of the court.

On the second game of the back to back Avery Johnson used eight guys off the bench, and got good minutes from Andray Blatche who scored 11 points with seven rebounds, and four assists. MarShon Brooks also played good off the bench scoring nine points on four for eight shooting, and added two steals.

The Nets will be heading back home to the Barclays Center where they have played good this season, as they will be facing the Clippers which means the Chris Paul Deron Williams match-up will be in the spotlight.

Bench Leads Nets Past Kings

Brooklyn Nets vs. Sacramento Kings Post Game Recap 11/18

The Brooklyn Nets were able to start their three game west coast trip with a win against the Kings beating them 99-90 despite the Nets starting five playing pretty poorly for the most part.

Deron Williams even though being banged up was one of the starters who actually played well against the Kings, as Deron filled out a nice stat sheet with 14 points, 10 assists, and five rebounds, but didn’t shoot it well from the field only going 4 for 12.

The other part of Brooklyn’s backcourt Joe Johnson had his worst game of the season thus far going a horrendous 1 for 10 from the field only scoring 10 points.

In the match-up of two young centers Brook Lopez was outplayed by DeMarcus Cousins, as Lopez only had 13 points on 5 for 14 shooting with five rebounds compared to Cousins who had 29 points on 12 for 21 shooting with seven rebounds.

Gerald Wallace made his return to the lineup after missing six games with a sprained ankle, but didn’t do much in his return only getting four points to go along with his four turnovers.

The Nets bench left its mark on this game with three great games from Andray Blatche, MarShon Brooks, and C.J. Watson. Blatche lead the Nets in scoring having a remarkable game scoring 22 points on 11 for 12 shooting. The backcourt combo of Brooks, and Watson both also scored very well scoring a combined 27 points on 9 for 15 shooting, as the bench unit was the real difference in the game.

The Nets next game will be against the Lakers in the Staples Center, as they will be facing the man that they most coveted in the off-season Dwight Howard.

Nets Win Shootout Against Cavs

toledoblade.com

Nets vs. Cavaliers Post Game Recap 11/13

The Nets were able to win their third straight game in a high scoring game against the young Cleveland Cavaliers 114-101, as the Nets improve to (4-2) on the season.

A much anticipated match-up between Nets star point guard Deron Williams, and one of the best young players in the league Kyrie Irving lived up to the hype with both players putting up eye popping stats. Deron Williams had his best game of the season thus far notching a double-double with 26 points on 10 for 20 shooting, and added 10 assists. Even though Deron had a nice game he was outplayed by Kyrie Irving who had 34 points on 9 for 19 shooting, and eight assists.

The center match-up of Brook Lopez and Anderson Varejao also turned out to be a great one in this game. Lopez played well scoring 23 points on 10 for 14 shooting with seven rebounds, and four blocks. As well as Lopez played it was seemed like nothing compared to Varejao who very well may have had the best game of his career on Tuesday scoring 35 points on 16 for 21 shooting, and grabbed 18 rebounds in the monster double-double.

The difference maker in the game was Joe Johnson who hasn’t played well heading into Tuesday, but got it going for the Nets. Johnson scored 25 points on 9 for 16 shooting with six assists, and five rebounds. Johnson had an amazing fourth quarter scoring 16 points with three straight three-pointers.

The Nets bench played well against a poor Cavaliers second unit, as Andray Blatche lead the Nets bench with a very good game scoring 13 points on 4 for 7 shooting, and added five rebounds with three blocks.

Gerald Wallace and MarShon Brooks both did not play again with their sprained ankles, as it was Wallace’s fifth straight game out, and the third straight for Brooks.

The Nets will look to continue their winning ways at home on Thursday, as the Boston Celtics will be coming to the Barclays Center.