It’s “must lose” stretch for the Nets. They want to get the best odds in May 10 lottery, maybe even secure that last envelope Mark Tatum, the NBA’s deputy commissioner, opens that night. At the moment, they are so close to success, sitting alone in second, one game behind the Indiana Pacers.
BUT…
Per various draftniks, the Nets have the easiest schedule the rest of the way and many of those games are with competitors in the race to the bottom. Moreover, six of the nine are at home. A win in such a tight
race could change the lottery order on a spring night in Chicago.
Starting Friday night with the Lakers, the Nets will have four games with teams likely to be in the post-season: Los Angeles, the Atlanta Hawks, Toronto Raptors and the Charlotte Hornets.
On the flip side of the ledger are five games with teams whose fate is close to theirs: two games with the Milwaukee Bucks (with or without Giannis Antetokounmpo) as well as games with the other three teams Brooklyn is currently competing with: the Indiana Pacers, still ith the best odds; the Washington Wizards; currently with third best, and the Utah Jazz who’ve dropped down to fifth. Making things even more interesting is the fact that the Jazz have the hardest schedule of the rest of the way.
As C.J. Holmes of the Daily News wrote Thursday:
Five of the Nets’ last eight games will come against teams currently living in the same neighborhood of the standings, Sacramento, Washington and Indiana, plus two matchups with the Milwaukee Bucks. Those games matter because they’re direct swings in the race for the bottom.
In a normal season, the phrase “must-win” would hover over a stretch like that. For Brooklyn, it’s the opposite. The Nets have spent the year searching for progress, but the finish line is now defined by draft lottery placement. With the Pacers only a game ahead, the Nets can realistically chase the league’s worst record if they simply stay on their current trajectory.
The Nets at this point are arguably the worst team in the league: They have lost nine straight. They have shut down Egor Demin (plantar fascia), Day’Ron Sharpe (hand), and have functionally done the same with Michael Porter Jr. (hamstring). They won’t re-evaluate MPJ till the last few games of the season. Noah Clowney (wrist) and Danny Wolf (ankle) situation remain uncertain. Even 10-day Grant Nelson (knee) had to sit after his 10-day. They have called up the reserves from Long Island in their three two-ways and a 10-day but no wins have materialized.
As Holmes notes, the Nets have gotten some positives vibes from Ben Saraf, Josh Minott and Ziaire Williams, ages 19, 23 and 24, but they’re not going to carry teams to many wins. Many fans on other record tweeting or saying they don’t want to win another game..
It WILL get hairy at the end. In the last week, the Nets will play five games:
- April 5 – Washington Wizards at home;
- April 7 – Milwaukee Bucks at home;
- April 9 – Indiana Pacers at home;
- April 10 – Milwaukee Bucks in Milwaukee;
- April 12 – Toronto Raptors in Toronto.
Still note this: while the top three teams all have a 14% chance at the No. 1 and 52% chance at a top four pick, the team with the worst record will have a 48% chance at the fifth pick. Indeed, that’s happened the last three lotteries and remember the team with the worst record hasn’t won the top overall pick in the lottery since rules were changed back in 2019.
The jockeying may not even end with the lottery, either. One NBA decision-maker suggested that the wealth of picks Sean Marks & co. have accumulated could play a role by draft night: moving up if Brooklyn is disappointed in where they landed, as they were when they dropped from No. 6 to No. 8 last May.
“The only reason you bank firsts like that is to be able to strike opportunistically,” he told ND. “Now this draft will cost them (if they try to move up) and they will have to find a dance partner but say they land at the dreaded 5 spot. They have enough draft capital to get the to the third pick.”
He did not suggest possible packages.
Bottom line for him: somehow get one of the top three consensus picks, all of whom he considers franchise-changers. The names remain the same for him: A.J. Dybantsa, Cam Boozer or Darryn Peterson. Beyond that, he said, the Nets will get a good player but nothing that will change their current timeline.
It is all total speculation, of course. So,what’s the best way to handle the anxiety of these last nine games? Maybe one part praying for good luck, another part looking for players like Ziaire Williams and Ben Saraf to keep developing but the biggest part is rooting for the Brooklyn scouting staff to find the best player available no matter where they pick. After all, it isn’t just about the lottery pick. Tankathon thinks they have second best group of picks at Nos. 3, 33 and 43, That has to be comforting.
