Allen Crabbe, Jarrett Allen shine despite Nets' loss to Clippers

Allen Crabbe tossed up two shots from beyond the three-point arc in the first minute Saturday night, and both landed in the basket. Later, Jarrett Allen literally rose to the occasion, grabbing a pair of alley-oop passes and stuffing them to highlight his most prolific game as a pro.

Yes, the Nets blew a 13-point third-quarter lead Saturday against the Clippers at Barclays Center. But inside the rubble of the 127-119 loss, Allen and Crabbe flashed some positive signs for a 7-10 team that will be without the injured Caris LeVert for at least a few months.

In his debut with the Nets after being acquired from Portland, Crabbe set the franchise record by making 201 three-pointers in 2017-18. The sixth-year guard struggled with his shooting for the first 15 games this season, though, before scoring a season-high 15 points against Los Angeles. He shot 5-for-11 overall, including 3-for-6 from three-point range.

“Not only shot the ball well, but I thought he drove to the basket,” coach Kenny Atkinson said. “His energy was great. So that’s really good news for us because we obviously need it.”

Allen cleaned up inside. The 6-11 center scored a career-high 24 points and had 11 rebounds, including five off the offensive glass.

“Fantastic,” Atkinson said. “He was all over the place. I should’ve played him more [than 28:17]. He was really good. Both boards. His offensive rebounding has been unexpected and a pleasant surprise. If he can keep that up, it’s going to really help us.”

After playing one season at Texas and being drafted 22nd overall in 2017, Allen topped all rookies in field-goal percentage (. 589) and blocks per game (1.2) in 2017-18. He averaged 8.2 points and 5.4 rebounds.

After getting four double-doubles in 72 games last season, he has five in 15 games and is averaging 12.5 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.9 blocks.

The 20-year-old big man saw his latest game as representative of his development. “I think it was a big example,” Allen said. “For me personally, I was just being able to read pick-and-rolls a lot better. I was able to read just the whole defense better. So it’s definitely a step in the right direction.”

Crabbe showed up Saturday shooting 25.6 percent overall and 27.3 percent on three-pointers. “The coaching staff tells me to keep shooting,” he said. “Nobody’s telling me to stop. So I’ve just got to keep at it until it clicks. Hopefully, this is the first game headed in the right direction . . . With Caris out, I feel like everybody has to step up in some way . . . I’m just trying to get back to really how I used to be.”