RealGM

This is another tough test, I'm cautiously optimistic that our team will be ready. For whatever crazy reason, Brooklyn have had no problem getting "up" for big games; hopefully this is no exception.

It was wise to rest Harden Sunday, even if the aftertaste was bitter from the game. It pains me to say, at a certain point against Washington, I was hoping we would lose instead of eek out a W. We can't get into a habit of relaxing our defensive principles against ANY opponent, even after we build an early lead. Our lack of size and defensive length means that no lead is safe, we cannot let our guards down for even a moment until the clock hits 00:00.

The Clippers are the hottest team in the league, dominant on both ends. They are missing their emotional leader Beverly, but Reggie Jackson is fully capable of abusing our perimeter defense. Batum is questionable, though I would guess he'll play. He's been a gem of a FA pickup, menacing on D and efficient on O. Nets killer and former FA target Serge starts for them at C, and their backup Zubac could be even more of a mismatch for our 2nd unit. And then you have Kawhi and Paul. Our two biggest stars, Kevin and James, will have their hands full defensively with these two. They both have the length to shoot over, and the strength and quickness to get around us.

I'm excited. Go Brooklyn!

Subtle hint indicating we might see fans back this season: Barclays has renovated the swag shop merchandise store into a new entrance for fans on the side of the arena.

First must win of the season for me.

After that last loss, the team needs to respond. We need to show we can defend. and we need to continue to show that we can beat good teams. no excuses. not for nash, not for the big 3. no reason not to win this game. this is a "backbone" game. this is a how much do you want it game.

can nash get this team up?
will this team play hard for nash?

alot will unfold tonight

I have no faith after the last game. Please prove me wrong Nets.

I don't think this is a "must win" but it's definitely a barometer game. The Clips are looking like the best challenger to the Lakers in the West and it will be nice to see how the Nets match-up.

The team will 100% be locked in. They always play up to opponents and they just lost embarrassingly. It's probably going to be another super high scoring game again and I trust the Nets more in the 4th Q than PG and Kawhi.

This will be a battle that will come down to us protecting the glass and taking care of the ball. if we fail to do both things, we will lose.

Prokorov wrote:First must win of the season for me.

After that last loss, the team needs to respond. We need to show we can defend. and we need to continue to show that we can beat good teams. no excuses. not for nash, not for the big 3. no reason not to win this game. this is a "backbone" game. this is a how much do you want it game.

can nash get this team up?
will this team play hard for nash?

alot will unfold tonight

It's not just on Nash. if the players don't have pride as a group to play hard then we have a bigger problem than an inexperienced coach.

?s=20

It is backed up by basketball reference too. Let's see which team we going to see tonight. Another thing to watch is how often will Mash go small. I picked both Serge and Zubac on FanDuel. Both dirt cheap and will get 100 fan pts imo. Prove me wrong Brooklyn.

That court is sick !

I think we win this one convincingly . For some reason Nets have easily beaten contending teams this season and stink it up against horrible teams. Should be a fun game though, I'll have to watch the replay because I gotta work unfortunately.

We have the best record against teams above .500. We’re coming into the game with the best home record in the East.

I know that Wizards loss was embarrassing but there is nothing coming into tonight with Harden back and Pelle available that I’d be worried about. If Nash gets out coached, so be it but ultimately we are 3rd in the East with the 2nd best offense in the league across the board.

PG said they were looking forward to this matchup and I certainly think we are too. Especially from the guys who made those key mistakes.

I think we got this and I’m certainly expecting some changes tonight.

MrDollarBills wrote:This will be a battle that will come down to us protecting the glass and taking care of the ball. if we fail to do both things, we will lose.

I agree for the most part, extra possessions will decide the game. 2nd chance points from offensive rebounds by the other team have been our undoing this season, and the Clippers have a ton of size to throw at us at every position. We will need to gang rebound, and simply fight harder than them on the boards.

As for turnovers, I wish everyone would stop focusing on how many we have. Yes, typically teams need to watch how many turnovers they make. That's not so much of an issue for me, because we are such a creative team. We may have 18 or 20 turnovers, but will have a higher than usual number of assists as well, Typically 30 to 35 period that's a great ratio, I can live with that in any game. The real problem is turnover margin. We not forcing ANY turnovers by our opponents. They are way too comfortable swinging the ball cross court, threading pocket passes into traffic; it needs to stop.

If we have 20 giveaways and the Clippers have a league average 14, I feel very comfortable with this game. The problem is, when we have a high number of turnovers, and our opponent will only have 6 or 8, so we're giving them extra chances to score against us. That's why we can shoot 55% from the field and still lose.

And this is what I’m talking about with Nash. This is exactly it.

We have no practice time. So, what’s the problem asking him to set screens, rebound, block shots, find the cutters on the high post and **** play defense for 10 **** spot minutes? What is he needing to be up to speed on? Our terrible defensive system?



So, basically he’s doing nothing but saying the same **** as before. Great.

This most definitely isn't a must win. We were 8-2 before the bad loss to the Wizards. We're playing a top 2 team in the league. A win would be great. What we can't do is let them hang 140 on us.

MGrand15 wrote:This most definitely isn't a must win. We were 8-2 before the bad loss to the Wizards. We're playing a top 2 team in the league. A win would be great. What we can't do is let them hang 140 on us.

Yeah, I’m annoyed with the game within the game but ultimately we have the 8th best record in the league and 3rd in the East. A win here would put us 6th in the league in overall wins and create separation on Boston for 2nd with a loss to GS.

I know that loss sucked but we are in far better shape than we look at times. 2-0 this week and a couple losses in the East puts us back in sole possession of 2nd with a game against Philly for 1st place. Shumpert will make his Nets return against Toronto or Philly.

Great problems to have.

Nash is definitely turning into a MDA clone. All of the things I'm not a fan of with MDA is manifesting itself under Nash:

Odd rotation choices, playing starters/stars crazy mins in regular season, not trusting role players enough, offense>>>defense, lack of adjustments in scheme to fit the players, going small far too often/quickly, etc..

Hopefully this is just growing pains and he'll evolve a bit with more experience but I'm not enjoying his tenure(so far) as I thought I would.

Paradise wrote:And this is what I’m talking about with Nash. This is exactly it.

We have no practice time. So, what’s the problem asking him to set screens, rebound, block shots, find the cutters on the high post and **** play defense for 10 **** spot minutes? What is he needing to be up to speed on? Our terrible defensive system?

Yeah, Nash is developing a nasty habit of playing footsie with pretty basic coaching decisions.

Also, one of my biggest pet peeves in sports is when coaches make excuses for their team, about variables that apply to all teams. No one has had time to practice. Yet, we see some teams play good defense, while other teams played bad defense. Roster turnover? Other teams have managed to play better defense than us despite overhauling their team. COVID protocol, injuries, and other absences? Sure we've had our share, but so have other teams that are playing better D than us. For example, the team were playing tonight. Excuses are like @ssholes, everybody's got one.

You cannot tell me that this roster was constructed With the 3rd-worst defenders from a talent perspective, but we're performing at that level. That's coaching, and if his peers can do better in the same limited amount of time, the expectation for him is the same. He doesn't get new coach training wheels anymore, it's championship time.

Huge national audience statement game.

Haven't seen too much LAC this year but starting small seems like a strange decision.