The Brooklyn Nets finally won a game without Michael Porter Jr., defeating the Utah Jazz on the second night of a hellacious back-to-back that saw them fly in from Denver the night before. Brooklyn had lost their first eight games when MPJ sat, as he typically does in one half of a back-to-back, and while the Jazz entered with just 15 wins to their name, a starting lineup with three rookies would have to get the job done.
They did, led by a 25-point homecoming performance from the former BYU Cougar
Egor Dëmin. But on Sunday evening, Dëmin, Nolan Traore, Danny Wolf, and the rest of the Nets faced a much taller task, again without MPJ. Not only was it the infamous final game of a long road trip, but they were facing the Detroit Pistons, sitting atop the Eastern Conference largely thanks to their relentlessly physical, athletic play.
Example: Egor Demin began being harassed by Ausar Thompson on one end while guarding Cade Cunningham on the other. The young Nets, however, held their own early. All ten Nets who played in the first half scored, led by Nic Claxton and Cam Thomas, even Ben Saraf dropped a highlight…
Then the referees called the game, awarding both teams a draw, sending everybody home happy.
Just kidding. One hour later, the Nets were — stop me if you’ve heard this before — fighting to avoid their worst loss in franchise history. The Pistons went on a 37-6 run that bridged halftime; here’s a quick recap of that run…
Detroit bullied the Nets, who looked utterly helpless after the switch flipped. Turnovers led to run-outs which led to dunks, the crowd getting louder and louder as the home team morphed into the Harlem Globetrotters with ease. The Pistons scored 37 points off turnovers, a ridiculous total that doesn’t include Detroit baiting Brooklyn into layup attempts just to boom them off the backboard.
It didn’t help that the Nets shot just 22.6% from three, not only deflated by the circumstances but undoubtedly worn out by the road trip. Even Dëmin’s record-breaking streak ended: After 34 consecutive games with a 3-pointer (the most ever for a rookie), he went 0-of-4 from the floor in this one, putting up 3/0/1.
As for the other rookies, Saraf also went 0-of-4 with four assists and no turnovers, Nolan Traore 2-of-7, Drake Powell 3-of-7, and Danny Wolf 2-of-9 and a team-worst -43 plus-minus. Unlike Dëmin’s return to the Beehive State, this was not a banner day for the 2025 draft class.
“You got to learn from games like this, because you play against a very good team that plays consistently hard,” said Jordi Fernández. “And we don’t do it in a consistent way.”
Detroit was led by 21 points from All-Star reserve Jalen Duren, but everybody contributed. They stole the ball 17 times. Daniss Jenkins put Wolf on a poster. Meanwhile, the Nets scored 38 points in the first 18 minutes, then 39 points in the final 30 minutes.
Said Fernández: “You know, we’ll run it back, we’ll hold them accountable, we’ll give him a hug, whatever the case may be, to go out there and play better than this.”
In the end, the visitors did not lose by 60 points. Hooray! Instead, Brooklyn lost by 53 points, the third-worst mark in franchise history. At least it wasn’t against the New York Knicks this time.
Final Score: Detroit Pistons 130, Brooklyn Nets 77
Milestone Watch
- The Brooklyn Nets have now lost a game by 50+ points four times in the last three seasons. Only the Portland Trail Blazers, from 2021-2024, have ever matched that feat.
MPJ misses out on All-Star Game
The NBA announced the All-Star reserves on Sunday afternoon, and absent from the list was Michael Porter Jr. We knew he wouldn’t be a starter, but given that he finished 10th, 9th, and 10th in fan, player, and media voting respectively, a reserve selection seemed possible for the Brooklyn Nets’ leading scorer. Alas, the coaches did not view Porter Jr. as one of the East’s dozen best players.
Porter Jr. still has an outside chance to become Brooklyn’s first All-Star representative since Kevin Durant; Adam Silver will need to choose at least one injury replacement (Giannis Antetokounmpo).
As it stands, is he a snub? NetsDaily will answer that question tomorrow.
Injury Update
As previously mentioned, MPJ did not miss this one due to injury, but rather personal reasons. He had previously posted on social media about a death in the family.
Noah Clowney missed his fifth straight game with a low back sprain (no longer “lower back soreness”) while Ziaire Williams missed his third straight with a left calf contusion. Jordi Fernández did not provide a timeline for either player in pregame.
Next Up
The Brooklyn Nets return home to face two of the NBA’s biggest stars. Tip-off against the Los Angeles Lakers is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. on Tuesday night.
