Nets decimated by injuries but playing with toughness

For the first time in 20 seasons, the Nets have played four straight games decided by three or fewer points. Tight wins over Orlando and Minnesota were bookended by close losses to the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics, including an 87-85 defeat Saturday that was an old-school, physical battle that tested the toughness of both teams.

Starting with a blowout win in Miami, where the Nets regained their defensive mentality, they have gone 3-2 against top competition and learned something about themselves in the process.

“We’re learning that we can play with anybody regardless of injuries and whatnot,” point guard Spencer Dinwiddie said. “We know tonight we were missing our two best players in [D’Angelo Russell] and [Jeremy Lin], which we have missed the whole year. We also missed a very impactful player in Caris LeVert. Obviously, I don’t know what is wrong with DeMarre [Carroll], but he needed to be helped up after the game. That’s something we’ve had to battle through as a unit all year.”

Carroll (right knee) has been ruled out of Monday night’s game against the Raptors (27-10) at Barclays Center and will undergo further examination, but LeVert (left groin strain) is listed as probable to return to action.

Lin, of course, is out for the season with a ruptured patella tendon, but Russell is inching closer to a return from arthroscopic knee surgery.

All these struggles have served to make the Nets (15-24) tougher than their record looks.

Dinwiddie complained after the loss to the Celtics that the Nets don’t get the respect they deserve from the officials. But the Nets got plenty of respect from Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving, who compared it to a football game with “so many bodies on the floor” down the stretch.

“It’s come down to the wire a few games with these guys, which you can appreciate,” Irving said, referring to the Celtics beating the Nets three times by a total of 12 points. “It’s just high competition. They play with a sense of freedom . . . They just give us their best shot, especially the way they guard us, understanding our plays, the way they guard me, the way they guard our actions. It’s just high-level basketball.”

The Nets’ overall talent level may be below that of Boston and other top playoff contenders, including the Raptors, but if they can combine hard-nosed defense with an offensive pace that is one of the fastest in the NBA, they can be trouble for anyone.

“The last few games, we played against some really good teams, and we either won or competed all the way to the end,” said Joe Harris, who might find himself in a larger role if Carroll is out for any length of time. “That’s one of those things we’ve talked about is trying to get better each game and really trying to build off this.”

By Greg Logan

Gregory.Logan@newsday.comGregLogan1

Greg Logan has worked for Newsday since 1982 covering a wide array of sports and events, currently including the Brooklyn Nets beat.