3 Biggest Takeaways From Nets Preseason
With the Preseason coming to a close and the NBA season beginning in only one day, here is a look at a few takeaways from the Brooklyn Nets Preseason.
1. Nets Cannot Rely on Brook’s Health
Last season Brook Lopez suffered yet another debilitating injury, side-lining him for the remainder of the season after only playing 17 games. Lopez had surgery to repair his broken foot and was looking to come into this season strong and healthy. His preseason started out strong against Tel Aviv Macabi, where he put up 20 points on 8-12 shooting.
Then, the Nets headed to China where they would play two games against the Sacramento Kings. In the first game, Lopez dominated the first quarter and ended up with 18 points. In the second game, the Nets big man performed at a high level again and seemingly got through the first 3 preseason games healthy. However, news broke that Lopez had suffered a sprained ankle and would be sidelined for 10-14 days. He will possibly miss the opener against the Celtics.
Luckily for the Nets, it was only a sprain and there was no structural damage. The bad news is that this injury came just 3 games into the year. How could the Nets possibly feel confident about their big man going into the season? This may be a season long issue with Brook and the Nets have to be prepared for that.
2. Nets Finally Have a Real Backup PG
When the Nets first moved to Brooklyn they picked up C.J. Watson to be Deron Williams’ backup. Watson did a fine job, but his deficiency was that he really was more of an undersized shooting guard. There were many games he couldn’t miss and others where he couldn’t make a shot, but he always had trouble running the second unit.
Last season, the Nets signed Shaun Livingston. Livingston ended up being a steal for the Nets and played outstanding the whole season. The only problem was he became the Nets two-guard instead of being a true backup PG. He was a very good defender who was asked to guard guys like Lebron James, Kevin Durant, and Demar Derozan. He did much more than he was asked to do, but was still not the true point guard the team needed.
This year, Billy King may finally have acquired the backup that Deron Williams needs. King traded Marcus Thornton in exchange for Jarrett Jack and Sergey Karasev. Jack had a down year in Cleveland last season, but 2 years ago he was a top candidate for 6th man of the year. This preseason, Jack has shown the ability to be the leader of the bench mob. Jack loves to run the floor and start the fastbreak. He has great court vision so he always finds the open man for easy dunks. Jack is also a great mid range shooter who has range. In Jarrett Jack, the Nets may have gotten themselves the biggest steal in free agency.
3. Nets May Have Trouble Against Big Teams
A concern of Billy King’s going into the season was that the Nets are not a good rebounding team. This concern was confirmed after 7 preseason games. They were dominated by Boston on the boards, particularly Jared Sullinger. They made Sullinger look like Shaquille O’Neal in his prime. While the Celtics big man is a good player, he isn’t a star in this league. The Nets didn’t have their best rebounder Kevin Garnett while they played the Celtics. However, the reboudning remains a major concern for the Nets moving forward.
The Nets do have a pretty good big man rotation in Lopze, Garnett, Plumlee, Teletovic, and Jerome Jordan who was a preseason standout and now virtual lock to make the team. King may still want to acquire another big because Brook can’t be relied on to stay healthy and Garnett is entering his 20th year in the league. Don’t expect a major trade, but perhaps the Nets can swing a deal involving Marquis Teague.