Before Bruce Brown got the news that he would be in the starting lineup Tuesday night against the Utah Jazz, he got a text from Kevin Durant. With Brooklyn’s leading scorer out due to COVID health and safety protocols, he sent along a “next man up” message for the rest of the roster.
The Nets responded, with a wholly reconfigured starting lineup and rotation coming out with big energy and on-target scoring, leaving the Jazz in their rearview essentially from the opening tip on the way to a 130-96 win at Barclays Center.
But for all the shaking up and shifting, it was the familiar brilliance of Kyrie Irving that set the game on its course. Irving made his first nine shots and his first four 3-pointers on the way to 29 points, six rebounds, and five assists while shooting 12-for-19 overall and 5-for-7 from 3-point range. The Nets were up by 21 by the end of the first quarter and never faced a threat after that.
“Ky has been playing like that every game to be honest with you,” said Caris LeVert. “Nothing he does kind of amazes us. We kind of expect that from him. That was a great start. He took the shots the defense gave him, and he was very efficient out there, great at leading as well, talking to us on the defensive end, talking us through plays, talking to us with the new group he was out there with. That’s really underrated playing with a new group out there. Bruce that was his first time playing, first start this year, and it looked very seamless out there. I think Ky should get a lot of credit for that.”
With Durant out, and with the Nets having dropped four of their last five, Nash turned his rotation inside out, slotting in Brown, Taurean Prince, Jeff Green and Jarrett Allen with Irving. The four had combined for one start over the first seven games, that belonging to Prince when both Durant and Irving sat against Memphis a week ago, while Brown had appeared in just three games and been out of the rotation over the first two weeks.
It was also a group that Nash believes hadn’t played together at all, even in practice, before stepping out for the opening tip.
“We just mixed it up,” said Nash. “I think we got a shot in the arm out of it. Guys responded to it. Not only the guys who started, but the guys who moved to the bench were outstanding as well. Didn’t flinch and accepted their role and that’s the type of teamwork and attitude I think is so important if you want to win games.”
Brown, the defensive-minded guard, teamed with Irving to give Brooklyn an energized start on a night in which the Nets went on to hold the Jazz, who came in with a top 10 offensive rating, to 38.8 percent shooting overall and 32.4 percent from 3-point range. The Nets also cleaned up another recent problem area, outrebounding the NBA’s top rebounding team, 51-42.
Brooklyn shot 55.9 percent overall and 38.9 percent from 3-point range. The Nets’ 66 points in the paint and 31 assists were season highs, and they got 66 points off the bench as well.
“I think we were good on both sides of the ball,” said Nash. “I think defense created some opportunities for sure. We had 27 points off turnovers, that’s huge. Again, when you play together like that and fight, you have a chance every single night, and tonight we happened to make shots and make plays and not turn the ball over to go along with it, so it was a resounding win. Even when you don’t have your best stuff, when you fight and you play together and you can limit the offensive rebounds, you give yourself a chance at a win. I thought the defense helped the offense tonight, and frankly the offense helps the defense too, because when you make shots and you make plays I think it gives you a little more juice going the other way as well.”
Allen led the board work with 18 rebounds to go with 19 points for this third double-double in the last four games, and added three steals and two blocks while shooting 8-of-9. LeVert scored 24 points on 50-percent shooting, hitting 9-for-18 with five assists. Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot scored 11 points and Joe Harris added 10.
Irving and the Nets came out razor-sharp on the way to a 63-44 halftime lead. Irving had 22 points at the break while shooting 9-of-12 overall and 4-of-5 from 3-point range, while the Nets shot 55.3 percent and 40.0 percent from three.
Brooklyn’s early blitz included Irving scoring 12 points in the first six minutes as the Nets made nine of their first 11 shots and jumped out to a 20-4 lead. Irving wrapped up the first quarter with 18 points — the most any Net has scored in a quarter this season — while making all seven of his shots, including four 3-pointers, with three assists and three rebounds as the Nets built a 35-14 lead.
A little 7-0 burst by the Jazz early in the second quarter was just a blip, with the Nets following up with a 16-6 run capped by LeVert’s spin through the lane for a 53-27 lead, Brooklyn’s largest of the first half before the Nets took a 19-point lead into the break.
Brooklyn kept on rolling through the third quarter, making 14-of-25 shots while LeVert scored 14 of 16 points during one stretch and assisting on the other two with a lob to Allen for a dunk. Brooklyn took a 98-73 lead into the fourth quarter, and quickly stretched the lead to 30 on a LeVert basket and a Luwawu-Cabarrot 3-pointer.
“It certainly feels great,” said Nash. “Win or lose, the effort, the connectivity, the things we try to build on every day, that collective fighting spirit, you could see it. It’s a pleasure to watch and to coach, and proud of the guys. We’ve had a little bit of a tough run and a little bit of a cloud forming over us and guys put it aside tonight. Played really hard and played together and it was a great performance.”