LeVert injury looms large in Nets swoon
WASHINGTON — The Nets have gone from middle of the pack with Caris LeVert to bottom of the barrel since he got hurt.
The Nets trailed almost the entire night in a 102-88 loss to the Wizards on Saturday night — their sixth straight defeat.
This wasn’t like Friday’s double-overtime collapse against Memphis when the Nets blew a seven-point cushion with 30 seconds left in regulation. They never had a lead after midway through the first quarter Saturday in a game in which they couldn’t beg or buy a jumper.
“Our shot selection has got to improve,” coach Kenny Atkinson said. “Whether a team switches or they’re in zone, I’m not thrilled with the shot selection. We’ve got to go back to the drawing board. In these past games, our shot selection has really slipped and our offensive efficiency has really slipped. It’s hurting us. Shot selection and turnovers are our cross to bear. We’ve got to improve both.”
Brooklyn had 19 assists and 19 team turnovers, shooting just 8 of 33 from 3-point range. Playing without deadeye Joe Harris (adductor), guards D’Angelo Russell, Spencer Dinwiddie and backup Shabazz Napier combined for just 24 points on 8of-30 shooting, including 2-of-14 from deep. It was, in short, a hot mess.
“We’re mixing and matching, and then also trying to figure out where our shots should come from, what type of looks we’re trying to get … but some of that’s also missing shots, and sometimes you press a little. So it’s a little chicken and egg,” said Dinwiddie, acknowledging the loss of Harris has left them short on shooters.
“We [were] getting our whole team to where it’s going to be for the next several months, right, and then we lose one of the best 3point shooters in the entire NBA. So now it’s another adjustment period. But that’s no excuse. It’s next man up. We’re all NBA players and we have to figure it out.”
Brooklyn hasn’t had any answers since LeVert got hurt. It’s hard to overstate how badly his injury has derailed their season. He’d been getting early All-Star buzz in a 6-7 start that included wins over Denver, Detroit and Philadelphia. Then their best player went down with a dislocated foot Nov. 12.
Since? They’ve dropped nine of 11, with six of those defeats coming against losing teams.
The latest was to the Wizards, watching John Wall run by them for a game highs of 30 points and nine assists. Bradley Beal added 22 points and Markieff Morris 20 off the bench.
Bereft of offense, the Nets didn’t have a single player with 15 points. They were led by Allen Crabbe’s modest 14. After raising eyebrows by jacking up 52 shots in the prior two games, Russell took just eight and had eight points.
The Nets never led after early in the first quarter. They were within 42-39 at the break but promptly coughed up an 11-0 run to start the second half, falling behind 53-39 on a Wall 3-pointer.
“We didn’t come out focused,” Atkinson said. “We missed a couple defensive assignments. I think that’s where the game switched. We called a timeout and tried to get back in it but could get over the hump.”
Dinwiddie added: “We really lost the game, the first unit in the third quarter, that first five minutes. Obviously it was, what, 42-39 at halftime? So we still weren’t hitting shots clearly, but our defense had held up. The first five minutes, it got away.”
The Nets (8-16) briefly tried to claw back with a 13-5 run, Crabbe’s layup cutting it to 58-52. But they fell right back into an even deeper hole. Washington pushed it to 77-62 on a Beal layup with 9:56 left, and Morris stuck the dagger in.
The New Jersey-born big man had 15 points on 7-of-7 shooting in the fourth quarter as Washington hit 14-of-19.
“They were playing small ball. Too small,” Morris said. “We took advantage.”