Even without Jordi Fernández, the Nets put up a high score in Big Buck Hunter tonight.
Returning home their second game of alternate programming to NBA Cup, Brooklyn secured their most dominant win of the season this evening. It was also the first career head-coaching win for Steve Hetzel, who had to fill in for Fernández, who sat out with the flu.
Before the game, Hetzel explained that he aimed embody an extension of what Fernández preaches. In a game where the Nets dominated from deep, pressured
the ball, and won when they probably shouldn’t have, he couldn’t have done a better job.
Fernández’s extended presence could be felt from the jump. After a poor performance on Friday, he publicly criticized and challenged Egor Dëmin to play better. Dëmin, even with Fernández unable to see it in person, was ready to show his coach he could do better. Dëmin made all four of his opening period shots, including a triple off a screen which got the scoring started for Brooklyn. Even with Myles Turner lurking, he managed to put some pressure on the rim…
As Dëmin aimed to turn things around, Michael Porter Jr. looked to maintain course. The Nets’ latest forward flourishing in an expanded opportunity here in Brooklyn gave us five first period points along with three assists. He only finished with 12 tonight, but his teammates had his back, which ended up being a theme for the game.
For the whole game, but especially in the first, Day’Ron Sharpe played a major role there. He led everyone with nine points in the first, finding ample success in the pick and roll whether being set up by Drake Powell or Tyrese Martin off the bench.
Between those three, the Nets put up 37 first period points and led Milwaukee by double digits going into the second frame. They posted .625/.500 splits in the quarter and their made 15 field goals made represented a first-quarter season high. The frame wasn’t without a few sloppy sequences, which were to be expected from a young team missing its head coach, but Brooklyn found a way to turn enough of them in their favor.
The Nets inflated their lead to 18 early in the second and got it as large as 19. While continuing to shoot well, they forced six Buck turnovers in the frame which gave them eight extra points.
Despite all those buckets, the Nets were five seconds away from going into halftime without a single playing reaching double digit points, as Nic Claxton got 10 right before the buzzer. The balanced attack saw six Nets contribute with eight or more points in the first half. It was the first time they did that since 2/26/24 at Memphis, and put the Nets in front by a 65-48 score.
Milwaukee, playing without Giannis Antetokounmpo tonight (and now maybe forever) looked like a team missing its best player. Aside from their loose grip on the rock, they struggled to create out of their offensive sets, often relying on Kyle Kuzma or Kevin Porter Jr. to create in isolation. Kuz led all scorers at the break with 13 points after shooting 6-10 from the field. He and Ryan Rollins were the only Bucks with more than two made field goals in the half.
Miraculously, the Bucks were even worse at the other end. To say their wing defenders were like turn styles would be disrespectful to MTA security staff members.
Seeing those deer in their headlights, the Nets then floored it in the third, going up by as many as 29 in the period. They got 10 more points off turnovers in the quarter and canned four triples in the frame’s first five minutes and went on to shoot 7-14 from deep in the frame. In doing so, they matched Milwaukee’s total amount of made threes for the game by that point.
Perhaps the best part about Brooklyn’s massive lead entering the fourth was that it allowed us to see Nolan Traoré a length for the first time all season. The second pick of the Flatbush Five has spent most of the year on Long Island, but came in tonight with nine minutes to go. He never got into the scoring column, but helped others do so, tallying three assists in nine minutes.
In the process, Brooklyn’s lead boiled into the 40s. What looked like an old fashioned blowout eventually turned into an embarrassment to basketball on Milwaukee’s part. At one point, The Nets are up 125-82 with 2:26 to play and Jericho Sims thought it’d be a good idea to try and dribble the ball through a defender’s legs. He ended up just tossing it out of bounds.
For anyone on tank watch and upset with the win, just know it could always be worse. The guys they played tonight can’t be feeling better. They’re really trying to win, and in the process, convince the only guy keeping them relevant that he shouldn’t jump ship.
While it’s five years too late, and not in the way we all want, the Nets might’ve finally defeated the entity that is “Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks.”
Final: Brooklyn Nets 127, Milwaukee Bucks 82
Injury Report
As mentioned, Jordi Fernández missed tonight’s game with an illness which we later learned to be the flu. Despite his absence, Hetzel made it seem like the coach is doing as well as you could under those circumstance.
“He’s doing well,” Hetzel said pregame. “He calls himself a specimen. He tested positive for the flu, but he has no fever. So he feels good. I talked to him this morning. I saw him, he was in here. He was in good spirits, but I think it was best for him to just get some rest.”
Ben Saraf also missed tonight with and undisclosed illness.
Next Up
The Nets will get their first crack at the Miami Heat this year on Thursday evening after three days off. At the time of writing, Miami holds the east’s eighth best record at 14-11, having lost four straight. He won’t suit up, but it’ll be Haywood Highsmith’s first game against his former team.
