SWEEP DREAMS
Reeling Brooklyn looking to boost play-in hopes with back-to-back wins over Hawks
The Nets’ extended funk has put even their play-in hopes on life support.
They’ll flatline unless Brooklyn sweeps the next two games from Atlanta.
“We’ve got to win both of the games,” Day’Ron Sharpe said. “We need both of them, because we’re trying to get into the playoffs. So we’re going to come in and fully focus so we can win both of the games so that we can make the playoffs.”
The Nets will host the Hawks on Thursday night, and again in a Saturday afternoon matinee. By Saturday night, their play-in hopes will have either been revived, or put to rest at midcourt of Barclays Center. They have no illusions otherwise. “I understand. We were just talking about it,” Sharpe said. “So we’ve just got to recollect, get past [Tuesday’s loss], put it in the past and get ready for the next two.”
The Nets sit at 22-36, four games behind Atlanta for the East’s final play-in spot with 24 games left on their schedule.
That’s a deep hole, but six back with 22 left seems more Mariana Trench deep — especially for a Nets squad that has dropped five of its last six, has Mikal Bridges struggling and Cam Thomas injured.
“Yeah, we’ve got to [turn it around]. If we sweep them — beat them twice — then I feel like that puts us in a really good position,” Nic Claxton said. “So we’ve got to have short-term memory and be ready for those two games back at home.”
On the surface, the Nets are hoping desperation and opportunity can coalesce into victory. They’ll be facing a Hawks team missing All-Star guard Trae Young, out with a torn radial collateral ligament in his left ring finger.
“Oh, with Trae being out, they’re gonna be free flowing more of their offense,” Claxton said. “So just stopping probably [Dejounte] Murray, it starts with Murray and just being solid and focusing on our principles.”
But the Hawks have not only won eight of 13, they’ve won their two games since losing Young by a combined 44 points. Atlanta crushed Orlando by 17 — just two nights before those same Magic blew out the Nets 108-81 — then obliterated Utah by 27. Murray has 42 points, 22 and 13 boards in the routs, and will be a test.
“It is good to be home. Go home, learn from it, and have a nice little home stretch and try to make a run,” Bridges said. “Sure, but I feel every game is super-important, so it’s not really looking at any other game. Our toughest game is our next game no matter what the issue is.”
One of the biggest issues for the Nets is Bridges’ form. Their leading scorer, Bridges has seen his production drop off a cliff lately. He’s been an aggregate minus-78 over the last five games, bottoming out in Orlando.
Bridges is averaging just 12.2 points on 32.9 percent shooting in his last five games, and a horrid 19.5 percent from deep. An 84.8 percent career shooter from the foul line, he’s hit 55.6 percent during this slump.
“I feel like when I’m open, you know, I’m going to take 3s. They all feel good, it’s just not going in unfortunately, which is not fun,” Bridges said. “Just continue to take what the defense gives me, keep being aggressive. Only way to get out of this slump is to keep shooting.”
Bridges has missed 26 of his last 28 3-point attempts, stretching back to the late stages of their blowout loss at Toronto in interim Kevin Ollie’s debut.
And Tuesday in Orlando, facing constant blitzes on the pick-and-roll with Thomas sidelined, Bridges was held to four points on 2 of 14 shooting and 0 of 7 from deep.
“I have to do a better job trying to get Mikal the ball more,” Ollie said. “He was just trying to make the right play and when he got the opportunity to get some looks he just didn’t knock them down. But he had some good looks and hopefully we can get those looks when we get back home.”