Nets' skid reaches six after loss to Kings in Sacramento
Nets guard James Harden passes behind his head as he is defended by Kings center Richaun Holmes, left, and forward Maurice Harkless during the first quarter of an NBA game in Sacramento, Calif., on Wednesday. Credit: AP/José Luis Villegas
The Nets are in trouble.
Coach Steve Nash can talk all he wants about growth and effort and coming together as a team, but the only thing that the Nets really need to do is get a win.
The Nets lost their sixth straight game Wednesday night as a struggling Sacramento Kings team defeated them, 112-101, at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
The win ended a seven-game losing streak for the Kings. The Kings (19-34) won for the third time in just their last 15 games.
It was hard to believe the way the Nets folded in the second half that it was only a couple weeks ago that they had the best record in the Eastern Conference. After leading for most of the first half, the Nets scored just 24 points in the third quarter and 15 in the fourth.
"Our level of play dropped significantly in the second half," Nets coach Steve Nash said after the game. "We just didn’t make shots. We didn’t make plays. We looked tired frankly."
No one looked more tired that James Harden, who scored just four points on 2-for-11 shooting. Kyrie Irving also struggled, missing three-pointer after three-pointer in the second half and finishing the game with 14 points on 5-for-15 shooting.
"It’s definitely frustrating," Harden said of the loss. "It’s definitely difficult. We have to find a way to get out of here as a group."
The Nets’ losing streak is their longest since a seven-game slide Dec. 26, 2019, to Jan. 7, 2020. The Nets haven’t won since beating the Spurs in San Antonio on Jan. 21.
The loss made moot an impressive game by Nic Claxton had a career-high 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for Brooklyn. James Johnson added 18 points.
Tyrese Haliburton scored seven of his 12 points in the fourth quarter on his way to a double-double. Harrison Barnes scored 19 points and Haliburton had 11 assists to help the Kings stop a seven-game skid. Buddy Hield and Davion Mitchell scored 18 apiece.
"The wheels just came off," Nash said of his team who was outscored, 58-39, in the second half.
Weird as it is to say at this point in the season, but the game was almost a must-win for the Nets.
The Kings were their best chance on this road trip to get a win as they close out the trip with tough games at Utah on Friday and at Denver on Sunday.
The Nets headed into Wednesday night’s play in sixth place in the Eastern Conference. That’s a precipitous drop from the first place they occupied all of December and were still clinging to as late as Jan. 21.
The Nets had opened their current five-game road trip with losses to Golden State and Phoenix, both of whom are championship contenders.
In theory, the Nets should have more of a chance to win on the road given the Kyrie Irving, the founding member of the Big 3, cannot play at home because of his unvaccinated status. Since the Nets decided they would let Irving play on the road with the team, they are 4-6 in the games he has played.
Durant has not played since spraining his knee against the Pelicans on Jan 15. Over the past two years, the Nets are 13-3 when the three have played together.
Barbara Barker is an award-winning columnist and features writer in the sports department at Newsday. She has covered sports in New York for more than 20 years.
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