BROOKLYN NETS

It was ice cold tonight in the Barclays Center and not in a good way.

Going into Monday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks, the Brooklyn Nets had lost back-to-back games for the first time in 2019. With their inevitable loss in this game, the Nets added to that streak — making it the longest since that terrible eight-game stretch they suffered from late November to early December. The good news, finally, is that reports note that Caris LeVert could be back in the rotation before the All-Star break.

It was obvious early in the game that the Nets had made some adjustments since the last time they played the Bucks on Dec. 29. Jarrett Allen was primarily defending Giannis Antetokunmpo instead of Brook Lopez, which proved to be much more effective, at least for a while. In general, Brooklyn was more willing to allow the Greek Freak in the paint, at which they would then collapse on him and attempt to force a block or turnover — just like in the play below.

That adjustment alone would have been enough to give Brooklyn an early lead if they were just able to hit some shots. The shooting struggles that have plagued the Nets were present early this game as they went 0-for-10 from behind the arc in the first quarter. Maybe they could benefit from an additional scorer who could create their own offense? (Read it, then hate on us.)

At any rate, although was Brooklyn was down early, they weren’t out of the game yet. In spite of their best efforts, they kept the Bucks’ lead to about 10 for most of the second quarter. They managed to do this while only hitting one of their first TWENTY three-point attempts, good for a hideous 5 percent. Unfortunately, it all collapsed in the second half — I’ll spare you the gory details.

(Spoiler: Giannis is REALLY good at basketball)

Ultimately, the Bucks are arguably the best team in the league — their record backs that up. The Nets are obviously still missing key pieces, but what can you do? However, it can’t be ignored that Brooklyn has started to slip in the standings. Something needs to change if this team still wants to make the playoffs. Will LeVert’s return inspire the squad to return to its winning ways? Only time will tell.

Brooklyn shot 42 three-pointers this game — they hit five. The polar vortex may have swept through last week, but the Nets are still waiting to unthaw.