When: January 6, 2016; 7:30 PM EST
Where: Barclays Center; Brooklyn, NY
TV: YES Network
Radio: CBS 880 AM
The first game of the post-Jarrett Jack era (some era, right?) for the Brooklyn Nets did not go too well, as it was a disheartening 103-94 loss to the Boston Celtics on Monday night at Barclays Center. Boston controlled the game from the beginning, opening up a 37-22 lead by the end of the first quarter, and never looked back. The Nets made a last-ditch comeback effort in the final frame to cut their deficit to five but weren’t able to make enough shots late to get much closer.
Once again, the Nets’ three-point shooting woes hurt them badly, as there was a long stretch during Monday’s game in which they missed 15 consecutive threes. It was a whole team issue, as Bojan Bogdanovic (0-7) and Shane Larkin (0-3) combined to miss all 10 of their mostly open long-distance attempts while Wayne Ellington went just 1-for-8 from deep. Brooklyn shot just 6-of-28 on the long ball with a putrid sub-38 percent performance from the field.
Turnovers were also a big factor in the game, as the Nets committed 14 to Boston’s seven. Part of this was due to the Celtics’ pesky defense — which leads the NBA in forcing opponent mistakes — but it was also because of Brooklyn’s own sloppy play, exacerbated by Jack’s absence and the poor performances from his fill-ins, Larkin and Sloan. Tonight, at home against the Raptors and resurgent point guard Kyle Lowry, turnovers could be an issue again.
Toronto, as expected, is leading the Atlantic Division right now with a 21-15 record even though free agent acquisition DeMarre Carroll — who was a big reason for the major success the Atlanta Hawks experienced last season — has played just 23 games this year and is out for the foreseeable future due to arthroscopic knee surgery he recently underwent. Center Jonas Valanciunas has also dealt with injury issues this season so it’s been up to Lowry and DeMar DeRozan to lead the way, which they have done very well for coach Dwane Casey.
This is the first meeting between the Nets and Raptors this season, and it catches both teams coming off losses. Toronto, after winning four of five, has lost two in row to the Bulls and Cavaliers and will be looking to right the ship in Brooklyn on Wednesday.
Probable lineups
TOR- Kyle Lowry (PG), DeMar DeRozan (SG), James Johnson (SF), Luis Scola (PF), Jonas Valanciunas (C)
BKN- Shane Larkin (PG), Bojan Bogdanovic (SG), Joe Johnson (SF), Thaddeus Young (PF), Brook Lopez (C)
Final thoughts
Considering they’re without their starting point guard (Jack) and best perimeter defender to guard DeRozan (Hollis-Jefferson), the Nets have a tough task ahead of them this evening as they look for their first home win since December 10th (over the 76ers) and end a seven-game losing streak at Barclays. They’re going to need to take care of the ball and make open threes (both not easy for them) if they want to win this game, and even that may not be enough. Oh, and they can’t let DeRozan get hot from the perimeter.
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