{"id":588908,"date":"2016-12-17T14:46:00","date_gmt":"2016-12-17T19:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thesportsdaily.com\/?p=588908"},"modified":"2016-12-17T14:46:00","modified_gmt":"2016-12-17T19:46:00","slug":"brooklyn-nets-long-island-nets-sean-marks-trahson-burrell-chris-mccullough-d-league","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesportsdaily.com\/news\/brooklyn-nets-long-island-nets-sean-marks-trahson-burrell-chris-mccullough-d-league\/","title":{"rendered":"The Brooklyn Nets are building their D-League affiliate in their own image, right down to the record"},"content":{"rendered":"
Much like their NBA counterpart and fellow tenant of the Barclays Center, the Long Island Nets have had a rough go of it to start their inaugural D-League season. The junior Nets are 4-11 and are toward the bottom of the Atlantic Division, which probably isn’t too surprising considering the roster.<\/p>\n
Chris McCullough, Brooklyn’s 2015 1st round pick who has shuffled between both Nets a bunch this season, does lead Long Island (among players with more than two games with Long Island) with 19.5 points on .469\/.333\/.618 shooting but, like the rest of his teammates, has struggled defensively.<\/p>\n
Long Island has given up over 113 points per game, which is the third-worst mark in entire league, and is letting its opponents shoot almost 48 percent from the field. Like NBA team, like D-League affiliate.<\/p>\n
Safe to say it has been a learning experience for 26-year-old head coach Ronald Nored, of Butler fame, as he tries to mix and match lineups with guys who, for whichever reason, never made the NBA cut. Considering that the Brooklyn Nets are also making do with a first-time coach and a roster full of — in a nice way — guys from the NBA’s bargain bin, both teams are going through similar struggles.<\/p>\n
Like Brooklyn, how many wins Long Island racks up this season isn’t all too important, and it usually never is for any minor-league team, regardless of the sport.<\/p>\n
What’s important is that the team produces players who fit what the NBA club needs. The Nets are looking to get younger with long, athletic guys who can run the floor and fit an up-tempo style of play.<\/p>\n
Interestingly, much of Long Island’s roster is actually from New York, in what is probably not a total coincidence. The current Brooklyn Nets feature three native New Yorkers, along with a New Jerseyan (Randy Foye).<\/p>\n
There’s Donnie McGrath, a 32-year-old Westchester native who played at Providence College and went undrafted in the 2006 NBA Draft before embarking on an international career that took him around Europe before bringing him back home to New York. Gary Forbes, from Brooklyn, began his pro career in the D-League, back in 2008, before charting his own international path which included stops with the Nuggets and Raptors.<\/p>\n
Lazar Hayward — yet another New Yorker playing for Long Island — who played at Marquette, was a first round pick in the 2010 NBA Draft and played in the NBA as a rookie, but shuffled around the D-League and has been in and out of basketball since 2013. He too is a member of these diverse Long Island Nets but has been sidelined after hand surgery.<\/p>\n