Brooklyn Nets vs. Phoenix Suns preview: Live from China!

The road to Opening Night takes us to China! The Brooklyn Nets began the preseason with a tidy home victory against Haopel Jersulaem on October 4. Joining them will be the Phoenix Suns. The Suns underwent another overhaul this offseason and are expected to be one of the worst teams in the NBA this s

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What is the story about?

The road to Opening Night takes us to China! The Brooklyn Nets began the preseason with a tidy home victory against Haopel Jersulaem on October 4.

Joining them will be the Phoenix Suns. The Suns underwent another overhaul this offseason and are expected to be one of the worst teams in the NBA this season. That’s for another day, but in the meantime they got off to a good start in the preseason after beating the Los Angeles Lakers on October 3.

Where to follow the game

NBA TV on television. Hopefully everyone has a hearty breakfast

on hand as this one’s getting started at 8:00 a.m. ET.

Injuries

No Egor Demin or Haywood Highsmith. Drake Powell is expected to play. It would be the 22nd pick in the 2025 Draft’s debut in a Nets uniform having missed all of Summer League with left knee tendinopathy.

Jalen Green missed the preseason opener with a hamstring injury. He’s reportedly close to returning, but no indication on if he’ll play this weekend.

The game

This is the first time the NBA has been in China since 2019. As it happens, the Nets were there in 2019 when all hell broke loose. For those that need a refresher, Bob has it for us

A tweet by then Rockets GM Daryl Morey supporting demonstrators in Hong Kong turned things upside down. Morey removed the tweet and apologized, saying he did not intend to offend “our friends in China” but Chinese authorities decided that the NBA hadn’t done enough to rectify things and a cold war between league and country ensued.

For three years, there were no NBA games on Chinese television, only highlight packages. NBA revenue from China, which before the incident rivaled that from North America, fell off. Chinese companies ended sponsorships. Adam Silver estimated that the league lost $400 million as a result of the controversy in the first year alone.

Similar to last week’s game at Barclays Center, the game between the lines isn’t political. However, everything else surrounding the game and the partnerships blossoming from it most certainly is. Should make for a fascinating dynamic over the years to come.

Those big picture issues aside, it appears the players are having a great time and making new friends along the way…

The Nets have been all over China and are looking to become one of the country’s most popular and accessible sports teams. As NetsDaily discussed when the Nets played the Cleveland Cavaliers in France back in January 2024, the team has been working to expand its reach around the world. Games like these go a long way in accomplishing that goal.

Fans in China are responding as the South China Morning Post reported Thursday.

Aiden Gan, 43, a business owner from Guangdong province, said he had landed in Macau earlier in the day with two other friends, with the trio revealing they had spent “several thousand [yuan]” on tickets for the two games, and about 6,000 yuan (US$840) on hotels.

Beyond business, we’ll get another chance to watch Nic Claxton put good tape on the board. Clax was active Saturday in jamming up pick-and-roll coverages, rolling to the rim, and being an all around presence on the court. The Nets will need Claxton to give that level of performance every night if they want to be competitive.

Preseason is about establishing trends that carry throughout the season. And for Jordan Ott and the Suns, that trend will be possessions. Coach wants the team to play as fast as possible, and when you’re at a talent deficit, getting out in transition will help make up for that. From John Voita over at Bright Side of the Sun:

We’ll see if Jordan Ott’s philosophy, the one he’s hitched his reputation to, actually manifests on the floor. Even if it doesn’t translate to immediate success, we’ll know whether it’s taking root.

Because if the Suns are starting to generate more possessions, that means something is shifting. It means they’re hustling harder. Playing more disruptively. Creating chaos instead of being consumed by it.

That’s where culture begins. Not with slogans or quotes, but with sweat. With the grind. With the willingness to make one more play, one more effort, one more possession that tips the balance. And if this team can start winning that battle, they might finally start winning the war.“

As we draw closer to the start of the regular season, we’ll start to see the main players play a bit more minutes. And with this being a special occasion, we’re guaranteed a bit more effort than the usual preseason affair.

Player to watch: Nolan Traore

Traore was one of the many Nets that had a good outing last week. Nolan was able to get to the rim, keep the offense moving, and looked confident as he shot. As Jordi Fernandez noted, it’s up to Nolan to build on good performances like that so he can continue to earn minutes and build confidence.

He should get plenty of time to match up against Devin Booker. Book is the last Sun standing following their failed “superteam” era. Fortunately for Phoenix, Book is still really good. Booker was a shade outside of the Top Ten in scoring last season at 25.6 points per game on 46/33/89 shooting splits. Theoretically, the looks for him should be a lot harder this season, but the vibes are a trillion percent better and that’s half the battle.

From the Vault

In the WNBA Finals, the Las Vegas Aces are up 3-0 over the Phoenix Mercury after A’ja Wilson hit a game winner in the final seconds. Seerat Sohi of The Ringer made a deeply unfortunate comparison for Phoenix fans, and the Vault has to acknowledge it. Look away, Phoenix…