Nic Claxton gives a good interview; you just have to ask the right questions. He isn’t as boisterous as Day’Ron Sharpe or as chatty as Egor Dëmin, but he is quite honest, particularly given the constraints of player-reporter Q&A, where honesty only benefits one side.
He wondered aloud, “Maybe I need to talk to a therapist or something,” after his second ejection early in the 2024-2025 season, and famously dismissed the Nets-Knicks earlier in his career: “Me, personally, I’ve never lost to the Knicks since
I’ve been in the league.”
But sometimes, speaking your mind can come at a cost, as Claxton is 0-14 against the Knicks since those comments. That fanbase hasn’t let him forget it…
During his exit interview on Thursday evening, just before Brooklyn’s final home game of the season, Clax was asked how he can improve his middling rebounding numbers at this point in his career.
“Well, one is like getting my teammates … getting easy ones,” he responded. “Sometimes, you got some rebound-hungry dudes on the team that can make the numbers dip, because when I average more rebounds, my teammates are pretty much letting me get the rebounds. That’s one.”
Sorry Nic, that was not the right answer. Brooklyn has long been a better rebounding team with Clax on the bench, and though part of that is having an outlier rebounding talent in Day’Ron Sharpe in the backup role, it’s clear now that Claxton’s subpar rebounding suppresses his value. Does his response really matter? Should he just admit that he’ll always struggle to board because of his frame? No, but there’s probably a middle ground between that and immediately calling out your rebound-stealing teammates.
But the best, most revealing part of Claxton’s interview was when he discussed the psychology of playing on another tanking team that never had any illusions of making the playoffs.
“It wasn’t always easy,” he said at one point. He credited his daughter with helping him “stay sane,” at another, and while he pointed out that he loved the camaraderie of the group and spending time with his teammates, his full interview was littered with such quotes.
As well as this one: “Next year, with us not having our pick, you know, it’s time for some expectations to win games, and that’s honestly what I’m looking forward to the most. For sure.”
Amen. The Brooklyn Nets lost their final game of the 2025-26 regular season on Sunday evening, a blowout at the hands of the Toronto Raptors, who secured the Eastern Conference’s #5 seed with the performance. The two-year tank is over. All that’s left is the NBA Draft Lottery on May 12.
Still, that’s no guarantee that Brooklyn’s future is so bright. Each of their five first-round rookies had some flashes, most of all Egor Dëmin’s 3-point shooting, but the collective was not too inspiring. At least a couple of them will have the tall order of contributing to winning games next season. Meanwhile, the team has one veteran who undoubtedly belongs in a real playoff rotation, and that’s Michael Porter Jr., who is extension-eligible but also trade-bait.
And yet, even if the Nets falter, it will be interesting. The games will all be worth watching; each win will be cause for celebration. If Jordi Fernández’s team again goes 7-4 in the month of December next season, fans can start dreaming about playoff potential instead of having nightmares about ping-pong balls.
But even with the lottery, a draft, and the mayhem of the offseason, six months is a long time to wait for more Nets basketball. Sunday’s loss in Toronto was the last day of school. Even if the excitement for summer is overwhelming, there’s still a tinge of sadness that we won’t see our friends for a while.
Ben Saraf crossed Jakob Pöltl into a seat in the second quarter, and it was pretty hilarious…
Saraf fouled out in the final game of his rookie year, though he posted 15/3/4 with four turnovers on 6-of-10 shooting, beating the buzzer at the end of the second and third quarter. Drake Powell posted 8/1/0 on 3-of-10 shooting, unfortunately a fitting end to his lackluster rookie year.
E.J. Liddell scored 17 points, Tyson Etienne led all scorers with 20, and Chaney Johnson had a 16/13/2 double-double. The past couple weeks have been about stacking losses and praying that this 20-62 season would finally end, but for the two-way players posting career-highs every night, it was the best stretch of their professional careers. I feel a small pang in my heart for them. I hope that their NBA successes don’t end here, and that they can produce for a team and fanbase actively hoping for wins.
The Raptors had six double-digit scorers, shooting over 44% from deep and over 73% from two.
“It wasn’t a pretty fourth quarter,” said Fernández postgame. “I think we were running out of gas for many reasons, but I thought we competed, and the guys played the right way … The only thing that I had to say to them was thanks for everything they’ve done this season.”
And now, finally, we turn the page.
Final Score: Toronto Raptors 136, Brooklyn Nets 101
