Stumbling Nets fall flat against Wizards
Brooklyn Nets forward Mikal Bridges, center, shoots from between Washington Wizards center Mike Muscala, left, and guard Jordan Poole during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Dec. 29, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) Credit: Alex Brandon
WASHINGTON — Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said this week that lineup changes were coming soon. They came Friday, with Dorian Finney-Smith back in the starting lineup and Cam Thomas coming off the bench.
It was meant to shake the Nets from their slow starts, but it couldn’t stop them from a dispiriting 110-104 loss to the Wizards at Capital One Arena.
In a week in which they struggled to beat the Pistons — the team with the NBA’s worst record and an NBA-record 28-game losing streak — the Nets (15-17) lost to a group that entered tied for the second-worst record and the league’s worst defensive rating.
The final act of the Nets’ seventh loss in nine games was shooting 21.7% (5-for-23) in the fourth quarter. The Nets’ 18-point period helped the Wizards (6-25) end a three-game losing streak with only their fourth win since Nov. 27.
“We didn’t turn them over tonight, we missed free throws, they played pretty comfortable and we didn’t take advantage of the opportunities we had,” Vaughn said.
The Nets missed 10 free throws two games after missing 16 on Tuesday against Pistons. They led by nine points with 3:07 left in the third quarter, only to give up a 16-4 run and fall behind 89-86 in the fourth.
The Wizards had just seven turnovers, shot 50.5% from the field and led for all but 46 seconds in the final period.
“They were scoring, getting shots,’’ said Cam Johnson, who had 16 points and seven rebounds. “We were kind of playing in the mud a little bit, not getting looks. Looks that we should be getting.”
The lineup change didn’t immediately fix the Nets’ problems defensively. The Wizards shot 55% in the first quarter and led 15-14 before Thomas, Day’Ron Sharpe and Royce O’Neale checked in.
The new-look bench rallied to tie the score at 25 by quarter’s end. Thomas then scored seven points in the second quarter, but the Wizards led at halftime after a buzzer-beating three-pointer by Deni Avdija.
“[Vaughn] told me he wanted to go with a little bit more size so we could put Doe [Finney-Smith] on the fours and Spencer [Dinwiddie] on the guards, because it’s tough on Spence to guard fours to start the game off like that,” Thomas said.
Finney-Smith had seven rebounds as the Nets outrebounded the Wizards 54-43. But he had only four points and was 0-for-3 on three-pointers. Thomas had 15 points and three assists.
During the fourth quarter, Finney-Smith and Thomas shared the court at times. It didn’t help the Nets’ shooting issues and the Wizards hunted Thomas on defense. Leading 101-97, Kyle Kuzma scored on Thomas on consecutive possessions.
It’s just a one-game sample, but it’s something the Nets have to keep evaluating. Thomas understood his new role and vowed to bring the same energy he would if he were starting.
“I’m just doing my job, man,” Thomas said. “As a competitor, obviously you want to be out there steady, but I’m just part of the team. We’ve got a lot of guys who could contribute at any moment. It’s just what comes with the team at this point, so I just got to accept it and excel in whatever role I’m in.”
The Nets, however, have bigger issues. Vaughn said his players are still learning to do their jobs on every possession. Their next four games are against teams with winning records.
Yet facing two of the NBA’s worst teams this week was a wake-up call for the Nets to figure out what ails them.
“We go into every game with a sense of desperation,” Vaughn said. “No matter who we’re playing and not be cool and not throw behind-the-back passes when you don’t need to and take advantage of every single possession. And we’re not doing that.”
Evan Barnes covers the Giants for Newsday. He previously covered the Brooklyn Nets, Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
