No defense for B’klyn’s defensive deficiencies

NEW ORLEANS — How porous was the Nets’ defense Wednesday night? They had Pelicans chasing NBA records, with point guard Rajon Rondo notching an eye-watering 25 assists.

The total was not only a team record, it was tied for fifth most in NBA history. And it felt so easy, so simple, Rondo had no idea he was closing in on history. That’s how little defensive resistance the Nets put up in allowing 40 assists and 53.3 percent shooting.

“Cheick [Diallo] told me when I had 18 so I spoke to Jrue [Holiday] and he handled the rest. The No. 1 thing is we got the win,” Rondo said. “I love passing the ball. I think when everyone touches the ball, it gives you energy and life on defense. So that’s why I’m a big believer in getting everybody touches and giving everybody a little energy on both ends of the floor.”

Pelicans center DeMarcus Cousins’ reaction to Rondo’s total?

“It was cool. Solid. He did his job,” Cousins said. “When you got a guy like AD [Anthony Davis] and myself, why wouldn’t you pass it?”

The Nets played their seventh back-to-back of the season — and fell to 1-6 on the second night of those sets. They have lost six straight, including a season-worst 120-87 loss at Toronto on Dec. 15, and they trailed by as many as 33 points Wednesday.

“That’s on us,” Rondae HollisJefferson said. “We have to do a better job from the start. We know ahead of time who we’re going up against and when.

“As players we have to be more fo- cused. Our average age is 24 or 25 years old. I’d think we’re certainly not worn out. We just had a bad night defensively.”

“I’m perplexed,” said coach Kenny Atkinson, who is mulling lineup changes for Miami. “Everybody plays back-to-backs in this league. It’s no excuse for us. We should do better. We should have more resiliency, more understanding what the situation is. They’re a big team but you can negate that with your activity getting deflections, when you’re smaller you have to be more active, and we just weren’t collectively.”