EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.—The description won't do this justice.

With 30 seconds to go in the first quarter of Wednesday's game at the IZOD Center, Nets point guard Devin Harris threw a lazy perimeter pass. It was stolen by Warriors swingman Corey Maggette, who forwarded it ahead to C.J. Watson. The guard rose for a layup that never made it to the rim – Harris had recovered to pack the shot with an outstretched right arm, flung behind his body as it streaked out-of-bounds. With the ball remaining in play during a scramble, Anthony Randolph dropped a bounce pass for a trailing Monta Ellis, allowing Harris time to set himself with both feet outside the dotted semi-circle. The ensuing offensive foul negated the break, and allowed the Nets to carry a seven-point lead into the second quarter.

That the defensive highlight came before the first period finished did not bode well for the Nets (2-20), who allowed 38 points and .667 shooting (16-24 FGs) in the second, eventually losing to the 7-14 Warriors, 105-89. Golden State forced 22 turnovers, converting them to 30 points and scoring 28 on the fast break.

"It's easy to make spectacular plays when you're just going against one, but when they're running and you've got 3-on-1 and 4-on-1, you've got to pick your battles," Harris said. "Tonight just wasn't there for us; some nights you have (are) like that. We'll fight through it and get back tomorrow."

Harris, who finished with 19 points and two assists against four turnovers, missed a chunk of first-quarter action after being poked in the eye by former Net Mikki Moore. He returned and played aggressively enough to earn 15 free-throw attempts, but again struggled with his jumper, shooting 4-of-11. Since returning from a strained groin, the career .452 shooter is connecting on just .361 of his attempts.

But Harris is far from the only Net errant from outside the paint: after a 1-for-10 performance Wednesday, the Nets are shooting a league-low .266 from three. That knowledge impacts opposing schemes, most evident in the Knicks' successful shift to zone defense in Sunday's defeat at Madison Square Garden. But swingman Chris Douglas-Roberts (10 points, 7 rebounds) said that as shooters get healthy and the percentages normalize, the threat will materialize, though it was never in tonight's plans.

"We knew, with this team, they didn't have too many shot-blockers, so we wanted to attack the rim as much as possible," said shooting guard Courtney Lee. "That was one of our big emphases for the game."

They did that, scoring 50 points in the paint (24-47 FGs), accounting for more than half of their total points and attempts. But those lazy perimeter and entry passes killed any momentum, even as they closed within five twice in the final quarter. Brook Lopez, despite leading the team with 21 points and 10 rebounds – good for his team-leading 11th double-double – struggled with foul trouble and double-teams, committing a team-high six turnovers.

Douglas-Roberts was next with five, three coming on blocked layups. Even backup point guard Rafer Alston (12 points, 5 boards) tossed away three passes, making it the rare game both he and Harris struggled with their efficiency. But having traveled overnight after Tuesday's victory in Chicago, the Nets couldn't summon the energy to offset the Warriors' relentless attack.

"(Golden State) is among the league leaders in steals," said interim head coach Kiki Vandeweghe. "Their game is pressuring and fast-breaking, and when you don't have the energy that you'd like to have to back-cut, keep moving and put the pressure back on them, it becomes a very difficult game. The other team senses that; you play basketball long enough and you can sense when you have the edge in energy."

For more on the Nets, be sure to follow @netsbasketball on Twitter or visit our Fan Page on Facebook.

<< Back to All Access News